Updates maintenance schedule in paragraph 4
Southeast Asia faces tighter methanol cargo availability after the halt of Middle Eastern shipments given the US-Iran war, as well as low regional inventory levels, with several southeast Asian plants restarting only late last week.
Middle Eastern supplies accounted for around 40pc of southeast Asia's methanol imports in 2025, and supplies from Malaysia made up around 51pc, data from Global Trade Tracker (GTT) show. Southeast Asia imported about 1.9mn t of methanol in 2025.
Malaysia's 1.7mn t/yr Sarawak Petchem methanol plant, marketed by Petronas, restarted during the week ending 8 March after being off line since the second half of January for planned maintenance, a source close to the company told Argus. The plant is expected to resume on-spec production while it stabilises. But only April-loading cargoes are available, given that most March volumes have been allocated to term customers against a backdrop of regional tightness following the US-Iran conflict. The plant is one of southeast Asia's largest methanol producers.
Meanwhile, Malaysian state-owned Petronas' 750,000 t/yr Labuan No.1 and 1.7mn t/yr Labuan No.2 methanol units are operating at full rates. Labuan No.2 unit is scheduled to undergo its annual maintenance shutdown in August for around 62 days, a company source confirmed.
Brunei Methanol (BMC) also restarted its 850,000 t/yr plant on 8 March after a shutdown since the first half of February caused by a technical trip, a source close to the company said. The plant is expected to resume on-spec production in the coming days.
There are four methanol producers in southeast Asia — BMC, Petronas, Sarawak Petchem, and Kaltim Methanol Industri (KMI).
Customers requested up to twice their usual term allocation volumes last week, given that many feared ongoing geopolitical tensions could further delay shipments, while spot availability remains extremely tight, other southeast Asian producers said.
Cfr Southeast Asia methanol prices climbed to a four-year high of $400–410/t on 6 March, as end-users rushed to secure cargoes because of disruptions to Middle Eastern supplies that transit through the strait of Hormuz, as well as limited regional availability.
