India imposes BIS controls on LLDPE imports

: Petrochemicals
25/06/16

The Indian government's standards bureau (BIS) has withdrawn the exemption from quality controls that had applied to linear-low density polyethylene (LLDPE) butene, according to a notice in the official government gazette on 12 June.

Quality controls were imposed on Indian polyethylene (PE) imports in January 2024, but emptions were in place for low-density PE extrusion coating, film, blown and cast or pharma, LLDPE butene, hexene and octene grades, metallocene PE grades, base resins of power cable, jacketing and other applications, as well as high-density PE PE80 and PE100 black and pigmented grades.

LLDPE butane is no longer exempt, although producers that have already been BIS certified will still be able to export the grade to India, according to market participants. The removal of LLDPE butane from the exemption list is unlikely to have a major long-term impact on the availability of the grade, as all key suppliers are already certified.

Demand for LLDPE butane has been flat this year so far and the market remains oversupplied. Ample sources of supply domestically and from overseas have weakened buying interest, and buyers are restocking on a need-only basis rather than purchasing in bulk.

India imported 205,000t of LLDPE last year, down from 250,000t in 2023. But imports have risen year on year in 2025 so far, with LLDPE imports at 53,000t in the first quarter compared with 39,000t over the same period a year earlier.

By Kabir Dweit

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