The global chlor-alkali industry is recovering slowly, with industry profitability increasing on a year-on-year basis

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The last edit to this post was made by sunjl1981 on 2013-1-6 at 20:01. It is reported that as the global economy gradually recovers, the profitability of the global chlor-alkali industry has also improved. Starting from the first half of 2010, there was a general increase in chlor-alkali production and prices, enabling the industry to emerge from the lowest levels seen in the 10 years following the economic collapse at the end of 2008. As an emerging major power in global chlor-alkali production and capacity expansion, China saw its chlor-alkali industry operating rate drop to between 50% and 60% in 2009; the United States’ operating rate was also only 70% to 80%, having fallen to 50% by the end of 2008. Last year, the operating rate in Western Europe’s chlor-alkali industry was likewise only 65% to 75%. The British consulting firm Tecnon OrbiChem reports that in 2009, 38% of the chlorine produced globally was used in the manufacture of polyvinyl chloride resin, making this the largest consumer of chlorine. According to estimates, the global capacity for chlorine production is currently around 76.7 million tons per year. Last year, the chlor-alkali industry operated at a low capacity due to a weak market for chlorine and vinyl resins; however, the situation in this industry has begun to improve this year, with the caustic soda market showing an upward trend as rising demand drove up prices. The increase in demand for caustic soda is mainly attributed to strong growth in demand from the alumina industry, wood pulp production for paper manufacturing, and soap production. Since the beginning of this year, there has been significant demand growth in these sectors, resulting in a current shortage of caustic soda supply. On the other hand, as the U.S. housing and automobile markets remain weak and demand for vinyl resins in Asia is also struggling, demand for chlorine remains sluggish. Although demand in Europe’s vinyl industry has seen a slight improvement this year, progress has been slow. Profit reports from several chlor-alkali companies in the U.S. for the second quarter show that demand for chlor-alkali products across the country this year is significantly higher than it was in 2009. Olin Corporation in the United States, located in Missouri, reported that its utilization rate was 83% in the second quarter of 2010, compared to 75% in the first quarter, and only 70% during the same period last year. Olin is the third-largest chlor-alkali producer in North America, with a total chlor-alkali production capacity of 1.78 million tons per year, second only to Dow Chemical’s 3.54 million tons per year and OxyChem’s 3.09 million tons per year. PPG Industries has 1.68 million tons per year, ranking fourth. Olin Company reported that the ex-plant price of ECU in the second quarter of 2010 (including the net prices of chlorine and caustic soda) was $470 per ton, up 7% from the first quarter. Dow Chemical Company states that if economic recovery brings housing and automotive market demand back to historical levels, demand for chlor-alkali products is expected to continue rising over the next 12 months. Previously, PPG Industries had announced that it would raise the prices of chlor-alkali products sold in the third quarter once again. Furthermore, to meet the growing demand for chlor-alkali products in the future market, in July of this year, Dow announced plans to form a joint venture with Japan’s Mitsubishi to build a new chlor-alkali facility in Freeport, Texas, with an annual production capacity of 80 tons. This facility will produce 880,000 dry tons (DMT) of caustic soda per year. Capacity restructuring will also take place in North America. Olin noted that last year, chlorine production capacity in North America decreased by 2 million tons per year, to 13.6 million tons per year; in the year 2000, the capacity was 15.6 million tons per year. From 2000 to 2012, chlor-alkali capacity in North America will decrease by 6.25 million tons per year, while new production capacity of 2.1 million tons per year will be added; an additional 3.05 million tons per year is expected to be added by 2012. . Note♀ ) # ♀ , .