North America

Fertilizer supply tightness and weather events seen challenging food security in 2022-2023

Sep 6, 2022

While fertilizer inventories saw some increases and demand showed some softening in mid-2022, reduced nitrogen availability combined with weather events will not only keep supply tight but test food security and may create instability.

North American polypropylene market to see two startups, challenged demand in 2022

Jun 7, 2022

North American polypropylene producers won´t see this year a repeat of 2021, when stronger-than-expected demand as the pandemic eased after vaccines met extreme supply tightness. This year is different not just because of startups in Louisiana and Canada that...

North American chemical producers oppose Canadian restriction initiative on flame retardants; Shell to provide EV charging to Penske trucks; HIF Global holds talks with Uniper over eMethanol from Chile

May 24, 2022

News Briefs

North America to see 4 million tonnes of new polyethylene production in 2022, half of it for export

Feb 7, 2022

North America will see in 2022 startups of new annual production capacity for nearly four million tonnes of polyethylene, the plastic resin most commonly seen shaped as grocery bags or milk jugs that has multiple packaging applications.

Tight resin inventories, supply disruptions in 2021 lead to record margins but also to calls for more transparency

Oct 26, 2021

Tightness in 2021 of plastic resin materials such as the polypropylene fiber widely seen in medical protective masks resulted in unprecedented margins but also brought a proposal for more federal oversight.

U.S. polypropylene producers begin to face buyers’ market after exceptional year of 12% demand growth

Oct 12, 2021

ExxonMobil, LyondellBasell, Braskem and other polypropylene producers faced in late September a buyers’ market for the first time after a year of tight inventories and exceptional demand growth that more than doubled prices.

Canada plans ban on six single-use plastics in effort to tackle waste problem

Oct 27, 2020

The Canadian federal government announced in October plans to ban six very commonly used single-use plastic items by the end of 2021 to tackle a pollution problem that became more pressing after China banned plastic waste imports in 2018.

Canada’s two biggest petrochemical projects face reality check

Sep 29, 2020

Inter Pipeline and Pembina Pipeline, two Canadian midstream companies behind the country’s two biggest petrochemical projects, face a reality check after spending hundreds of millions in plans to go downstream by turning propane gas they traditionally only...

Sasol ups US project cost estimate; UP, Katoen Natie start resin export service

Jun 15, 2016

Petrochemicals news you need to know.

US refinery capex to stay robust as owners target upgrades, quicker ROI

Mar 23, 2016

Despite narrower refining margins, US petroleum refinery capital spending will remain robust in the next two years, with about $9.2 billion worth of active capital projects (scheduled for construction start in 2016-2018) planned for 2016 and $9.3 billion in...

Pages