Orbia aims to complete US PVC plant by 2028
Global polyvinyl chloride (PVC) producer Orbia aims to bring a chlor-alkali and vinyls plant online in the US Gulf coast region by 2028.
The site would produce roughly 1mn tonnes per year (t/yr) of suspension grade PVC, with additional resources aimed at expanding specialty resin output by 110,000 t/yr as well as support for compounded resins used in Orbia's wire and cable business. It would also be integrated to include chlor-alkali with potential output at the site around 640,000 dry t/yr of caustic soda according to expectations relayed in an investors' meeting from the previous year.
The new production site was alluded to in an investors' meeting in May 2022. A year later, Orbia has further specified it would begin investment and construction in 2024 and complete construction by 2028. The original timeline was from 2022 to 2026, and Orbia said it could adjust the timeline further if needed.
A final location was still not provided, but the company indicated it was looking to access feedstock resources in the US Gulf region, potentially placing the facility somewhere in the Texas/Louisiana coastal region. Orbia already has a 550,000t/yr ethylene cracker in Ingleside, Texas as part of a joint venture with OxyChem. Ethylene incorporation into Orbia's new US site was not specifically discussed in the investors' meeting.
The company said the US expansion site would be fully owned by Orbia, allowing its supply and revenues to be better internalized and secured from exterior disruptions.
Despite the recent global slowdown in PVC consumption, the company expressed confidence in its plans for expansion as it views the global PVC industry as undersupplied and production investments as underdeveloped. It expects global needs to grow over the next decade, not only for PVC building products, but for water management, medical devices, and irrigation materials.
Orbia is still in the process of conducting engineering tests and field studies both in North America, as well as other regions such as China, to better understand global supply levels and trade dynamics to make sure its investments are properly allocated. Following the field studies, the company will seek final approval from its board of directors and begin issuing preliminary investments for the expansion project.
The company said it hopes its expansion will not only meet expected demand growth, but also shore up its existing supply needs within its subsidiaries, as the company has a footprint in various regions and products. Orbia has a European arm, Vestolit, in addition to subsidiaries in the US, Europe, India, and Latin America under subsidiaries Alphagary and Wavin.
Related news posts
Brazil turpentine shipments delayed by port backlogs
Brazil turpentine shipments delayed by port backlogs
London, 25 July (Argus) — Brazilian gum turpentine export shipments are being delayed by isotank availability that is significantly tightening owing to difficult booking schedules and port congestion in Asia-Pacific. Delays are close to a month for shipments going to India, sources said. In some cases vessels have been at a port for weeks, adding to delays caused by difficult booking schedules. With a number of Brazilian ports handling more goods than before, including Brazil's key port for pine chemicals exports Santos where cargo in the first half of 2024 hit a record for the period. There has also been congestion at Asian ports. "There is chaos in southeast Asia," a buyer in Asia said. "Ship lines confirm bookings just to cancel them later." India is Brazil's largest gum turpentine buyer, with most going into the camphor and aroma chemical markets during peak season in the second half of the year. India imported 12,509t of gum turpentine from Brazil in 2023, Global Trade Tracker (GTT) data show, the second highest since at least 2015. In 2022, India imported a record 12,944t of Brazilian gum turpentine, according to GTT. Volatile gum turpentine freight rates from Brazil to India has now incentivised several Brazilian suppliers to shift from cif to fob-based sales to avoid the risk of unpredictable isotank costs. Gum turpentine freight rates from Brazil to India have risen to around $7,000-7,500 per isotank from $2,500-3,000 levels in January 2024, one customer said. The escalating freight rates continue to put upwards pressure on the Brazil gum turpentine market, with prices rising amid steady demand from India, the US and Mexico. Brazilian Pinus elliottii gum turpentine spot export prices were assessed at $2,200-$2,250/t fob, Brazil port, on 15 July, up by more than 25pc from $1,650-$1,800/t fob, Brazil port, at the same time last year. The export prices are higher this year because of stronger demand from the US flavours and fragrance market, firm business activity into India and Mexico and lower buyer stocks. By Leonardo Siqueira Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Feedstock imports shake up US biofuel production
Feedstock imports shake up US biofuel production
New York, 24 July (Argus) — Waste from around the world is increasingly being diverted to the US for biofuel production, helping decarbonize hard-to-electrify sectors like trucking and aviation. But as refiners turn away from conventional crop-based feedstocks, farm groups fear missing out on the biofuels boom. Driven by low-carbon fuel standards (LCFS) in states like California, US renewable diesel production capacity has more than doubled over the last two years to hit a record high of 4.1bn USG/yr in April according to the Energy Information Administration. Soybean and canola processors have invested in expanding crush capacity, expecting future biofuels growth to lift vegetable oil demand. But policymakers' growing focus on carbon intensity, a departure from the long-running federal renewable fuel standard (RFS) that sets volume mandates for broad types of fuel, primarily benefits waste feedstocks, which generate larger LCFS credits because they are assessed as producing fewer emissions. Argonne National Laboratory's GREET emissions model, which has been modified by federal and California regulators for clean fuels programs, factors in emissions sources like fertilizers and diesel use on farms for virgin vegetable oils but not for used oils sourced from cooking operations. Refiners trying to maximize government subsidies are thus sourcing waste-based feedstocks from wherever they can find them. Through May this year, imports to the US under the tariff code that includes used cooking oil (UCO) and yellow grease rose 90pc from year-prior levels to more than 1.8bn lb (844,000t). While China represents most of that, sources are diverse, with significant sums coming from Canada, the UK, and Indonesia. Imports of inedible and technical tallow, waste beef fat that can be turned into biofuels, have also risen 50pc so far this year to 800,000lb on ample supply from Brazil. While soybean oil was responsible for nearly half of biomass-based diesel production in 2021, that share has declined to around a third over the first four months this year as imports surge (see graph). "Every pound of imported feedstock that comes in displaces one pound of domestically sourced soybean oil or five pounds of soybeans," said Kailee Tkacz Buller, chief executive of the National Oilseed Processors Association. Even as LCFS and RFS credit prices have fallen over the last year, hurting biofuel production margins and threatening capacity additions , imports have not slowed. Feedstock suppliers, many from countries with less mature biofuel incentives and limited biorefining capacity, might have few options domestically. And exporting to the US means they can avoid the EU's more prescriptive feedstock limits and mounting scrutiny of biofuel imports. More ambitious targets in future years, particularly for sustainable aviation fuel, "will create a lot of competition for UCO in the global market," said Jane O'Malley, a researcher at the International Council on Clean Transportation. But for now, "the US has created the most lucrative market for waste-based biofuel pathways." Incentives for US refiners to use waste-based feedstocks will only become stronger next year when expiring tax credits are replaced by the Inflation Reduction Act's 45Z credit, structured as a sliding scale so that fuels generate more of a subsidy as they produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions. While essentially all fuel will receive less of a benefit than in past years since the maximum credit is reserved for carbon-neutral fuels, the drop in benefits will be most pronounced for fuels from vegetable oils. Granted, President Joe Biden's administration wants the 45Z credit to account for the benefits of "climate-smart" agriculture, potentially helping close some of the assessed emissions gap between crop and waste feedstocks. But the administration's timeline for issuing guidance is unclear, leaving the market with little clarity about which practices farmers should start deploying and documenting. "While a tax credit can be retroactive, you can't retroactively farm," said Alexa Combelic, director of government affairs at the American Soybean Association. Squeaky wheel gets the soybean oil The concerns of agricultural groups have not gone unnoticed in Washington, DC, where lawmakers from both parties have recently called for higher biofuel blending obligations, prompt 45Z guidance, and more transparency around how federal agencies scrutinize UCO imports. There are also lobbying opportunities in California, where regulators are weighing LCFS updates ahead of a planned hearing in November. At minimum, agricultural groups are likely to continue pushing for more visibility into the UCO supply chain, which could take the form of upping already-burdensome recordkeeping requirements for clean fuels incentives and setting a larger role for auditors. Fraud would be hard to prove, but two external groups told Argus that the Biden administration has indicated that it is looking into UCO collection rates in some countries, which could at least point to potential discrepancies with expected supply. More muscular interventions, including trade disincentives, are also possible. Multiple farm associations, including corn interests frustrated that the country's first alcohol-to-jet facility is using Brazilian sugarcane ethanol , have asked the Biden administration to prevent fuels derived from foreign feedstocks from qualifying for 45Z. The possible return of former president Donald Trump to the White House next year would likely mean sharply higher tariffs on China too, potentially stemming the flow of feedstocks from that country — if not from the many others shipping waste-based feedstocks to the US. Protectionism has obvious risks, since leaving refiners with fewer feedstock options could jeopardize planned biofuel capacity additions that ultimately benefit farmers. But at least some US agriculture companies, insistent that they can sustainably increase feedstock production if incentives allow, see major changes to current policy as necessary. By Cole Martin Waste imports crowd out soybean oil Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US House passes waterways bill
US House passes waterways bill
Houston, 23 July (Argus) — The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill on Monday authorizing the US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to tackle a dozen port, inland waterway and other water infrastructure projects. The Republican-led House voted 359-13 to pass the Waterways Resources Development Act (WRDA), which authorizes the Corps to proceed with plans to upgrade the Seagirt Loop Channel near Baltimore Harbor in Maryland. The bill also will enable the Corps to move forward with 160 feasibility studies, including a $314mn resiliency study of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, which connects ports along the Gulf of Mexico from St Marks, Florida, to Brownsville, Texas. Water project authorization bills typically are passed every two years and generally garner strong bipartisan support because they affect numerous congressional districts. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee unanimously passed its own version of the bill on 22 May. That bill does not include an adjustment to the cost-sharing structure for lock and dam construction and other rehabilitation projects. The Senate's version is expected to reach the floor before 2 August, before lawmakers break for their August recess. The Senate is not scheduled to reconvene until 9 September. If the Senate does not pass an identical version of the bill, lawmakers will have to meet in a conference committee to work out the differences. WRDA is "our legislative commitment to investing in and protecting our communities from flooding and droughts, restoring our environment and ecosystems and keeping our nation's competitiveness by supporting out ports and harbors", representative Grace Napolitano (D-California) said. By Meghan Yoyotte Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Japan’s Resonac to optimize petchem business
Japan’s Resonac to optimize petchem business
Tokyo, 23 July (Argus) — Japanese petrochemical producer Resonac plans to optimize part of its petrochemical business by creating a new wholly-owned subsidiary by 1 August. Resonac decided on 23 July to set up Crasus Chemical, which will take over production of basic petrochemical goods from Resonac. It aims to set up the subsidiary as an independent, listed company to clarify and facilitate performance evaluations and to simplify a chain of command to speed up decision making. Resonac plans to achieve quicker decarbonization of its petrochemical production and to enhance competitiveness and profit growth. Crasus will be in charge of manufacturing and selling basic petrochemical goods like ethylene and propylene, goods made from acetic acid and synthetic resins. Resonac owns the 618,000 t/yr Oita ethylene cracker in south Japan's Oita prefecture that will will also be transferred to Crasus. Petrochemicals has accounted for around 20pc of Resonac's sales revenues. Japan's petrochemical firms have attempted to optimize their businesses with intensifying international competition and shrinking domestic demand. Mitsubishi Chemical has also tried to reorganize its basic petrochemical business, although it has yet to announce firm plans. By Nanami Oki Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
![Generic Hero Banner](/_next/image?url=%2F-%2Fmedia%2Fproject%2Fargusmedia%2Fmainsite%2Fimages%2F14-generic-hero-banners%2Fherobanner_1600x530_generic-c.jpg%3Fh%3D530%26iar%3D0%26w%3D1600%26rev%3D8ec86dce0f724687bd325a9a917cffae%26hash%3D9FD39B08C9D84A160C91A3649C40A186&w=3840&q=75)
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more