Chemical Week articles from September 2011

Chemical Week archives from September 2011

CW Webcast on energy management.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 19, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] DuPont and CSC feature in a free-to-view webcast on Wednesday 28 at 10am ET/3pm BST and 4pm CET to identify how energy management in the chemical sector can deliver cost savings. The speakers will outline how to build a...

SAFC targets $1 billion sales.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 19, 2011... Fine chemicals group SAFC says it is targeting sales of $1 billion/year in the next four years. chemweek.com/markets

CW's specialty chemicals round-up.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 19, 2011... Watch out for CW's weekly online specialty chemicals news round-up every Wednesday. chemweek.com/chem_ideas

Energy storage system unveiled.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 19, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Start-up technology firm Electrochaea (St. Louis, MO) plans to begin testing a proprietary anaerobic technology that converts waste carbon dioxide and excess electric power and water into oxygen and usable, storable...

Aromatics move lower.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 19, 2011... Aromatics in U.S. and Europe moved in synch, with spot markets reported lower except for mixed xylenes.chemweek.com/pricewatch

Nanotubes may harm biological barriers.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 19, 2011... A U.S. study has found that nanotubes could adversely affect biological barriers in people. chemweek.com/envirotech

Most read stories online.(Chemweek 24/7)
September 19, 2011... As of CW press time on Thursday, Sept. 22 1. Materials Sector Carbon Disclosure Around Average 2. Elevance Files For $100-Million IPO 3. U.S. Firm Pilots Technology to Convert Excess Electricity, Waste CO2 into Natural Gas 4. CW...

Turning point.(VIEWPOINT)(Statistical data)
September 19, 2011... Weakening economies in the U.S. and Europe are negatively impacting chemical demand, but producers note that conditions are not nearly as grim as sentiment and the sharp declines in financial markets would indicate. Demand and profits roared...

Rogers TAPS Dow exec.(Bruce Hochner)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Rogers Corporation has named Bruce Hochner, formerly a Dow executive, CEO effective October 3. Hoechner, most recently president/ Asia Pacific at Dow Advanced Materials, replaces Robert Wachob, who will stay on as the company's chairman....

Linde adds in Oregon.(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Linde says it has expanded ultra-high purity gaseous nitrogen and oxygen at its Hillsboro, OR site in order to keep pace with semiconductor firms in the greater Portland, OR region. Capacity terms were not disclosed.

Evonik catalyst plant.(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Evonik says it has broken ground on the construction of a previously announced biodiesel catalyst plant at Puerto General San Martin, Argentina. The plant, which is expected to be operational by the end of 2012 at the latest, will supply...

Air Products ups prices.(Air Products and Chemicals Inc.)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Air Products says it plans price increases of 5%-10% for liquid oxygen, liquid nitrogen, liquid argon, liquid and bulk hydrogen for merchant customers in North America, effective October 1. The company says it will also implement a 3%-5%...

ExxonMobil Chemical to build PAO unit at Baytown.(polyalphaolefin)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... ExxonMobil Chemical says it will build a world-scale metallocene polyalphaolefin (mPAO) synthetic lubricant base stocks plant at its Baytown, TX refining and chemical complex. The facility will have the capacity to produce about 121 million...

Fuller's profits rise on higher selling prices.(H.B. Fuller Co.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... H.B. Fuller reported net income up 22%, to $23.2 million (47 cts/share), on sales up 15%, to $388 million, for its fiscal third quarter ended August 27, helped mostly by improved selling prices. Fuller met analysts' consensus estimate of 47 cts/...

Church & Dwight, FMC, and Tata form Sorbent JV.(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Church & Dwight, FMC, and Tata Chemicals have signed a definitive agreement to jointly manufacture and market sodium-based, dry sorbents for air pollution control in coal-fired utility operations. Under the terms of the agreement, the three...

EPA seeks comment on atrazine ban.(Environmental Protection Agency)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... The U.S. EPA is considering" a petition by an environmental group seeking a ban on atrazine, according to a notice the agency posted in the Federal Register. Public comments are due November 14. The group, Save the Frogs, says atrazine "turns...

Elevance files to raise $100 million in IPO.(Elevance Renewable Sciences)(Initial public offerings)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Elevance Renewable Sciences (Bolingbrook, IL), a maker of renewable chemicals based on metathesis technology, last week filed for an initial public offering of up to $100 million. The number of shares and expected price of the offering were not...

Honam-Mitsubishi Rayon jv to build methacrylate plant in Korea.(joint venture)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Mitsubishi Rayon says its Daesan MMA 50-50 joint venture with Honam Petrochemical will build a plant to produce 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate, a raw material for paints and adhesives, at the jv's Seosan, Korea site. The plant will produce 11,000...

BASF and Petronas plan petchem jv in Brunei.(Petroliam Nasional Bhd.)(Joint ventures)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Petronas and BASF plan jointly to build a $1.6-billion petrochemical complex at Pulau Muara Besar, Brunei, says a report by Bernama, Malaysia's national news agency. Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, prime minister of Malaysia, discussed a proposal...

Badger awarded contracts by LG Chem.(Badger Licensing )(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Badger Licensing (Cambridge, MA), a joint venture among affiliates of the Shaw Group and ExxonMobil, has been awarded contracts by LG Chem to license Badger's proprietary technology for a 200,000-m.t./year cumene plant and a 120,000-m.t./year...

PTT subsidiaries to finalize merger plan.(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... PTT Chemical, and PTT Aromatics and Refining--subsidiaries of energy company PTT (Bangkok)--plan to hold a joint shareholders' meeting on October 18 to agree on final details of their previously announced merger. PTT announced earlier this year...

Storage jv in Poland.(joint venture )(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Oiltanking (Hamburg) and PERN (Plock, Poland) have agreed to form a joint venture that will construct a tank storage terminal in the port of Gdansk, Poland. The plot of land dedicated for development of the tank terminal is large enough for the...

Biesterfeld buyout.(Biesterfeld Spezialchemie GmbH)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Specialties distributor Biesterfeld Spezialchemie (Hamburg) has become sole owner of Biesterfeld Pro (Sofia) by acquiring the 50% stake of its joint venture partner, Bross Holding. Biesterfeld Pro has started operating under the Biesterfeld...

DSM-Sinochem deal.(Koninklijke DSM N.V.)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... DSM and Sinochem have completed a previously announced deal to create a 50-50 joint venture in antibiotic pharmaceuticals (CW, Jan. 3/10, p. 5). All applicable regulatory approvals and customary clearances have been received, DSM says. Sinochem...

Sasol plans GTL, chemicals project for Lake Charles.(TOP OF THE WEEK)(gas-to-liquids )
September 19, 2011... Sasol says it plans a project to build an integrated U.S. gas-to-liquids (GTL) and chemicals complex, its first GTL investment in the U.S. The company says it will conduct a feasibility study to evaluate the viability of a GTL venture near its...

Williams to expand ethylene capacity at Geismar, LA.(TOP OF THE WEEK)
September 19, 2011... Williams says it will spend $350 million-$400 million to expand ethylene capacity at its Geismar, LA olefins facility by 600 million lbs/year, an increase of about 44%. The expansion will bring total ethylene capacity at the site to 1.95 billion...

DuPont wins $920 million in Kevlar trade secrets case.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)(E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co.)
September 19, 2011... A federal jury has awarded DuPont 919.9 million in compensatory damages in a lawsuit against Kolon Industries over the theft of trade secrets and confidential information related to DuPont's aramid fiber technology. Aramid fiber, invented by...

Huntsman to boost epoxy resins capacity in U.S.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Huntsman says it is planning a significant expansion of epoxy resin capacity at its McIntosh, AL facility, targeting rapid growth in aerospace material applications. The investment, estimated at approximately $50 million, would double epoxy...

CPChem shutters Texas polypropylene jv.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)
September 19, 2011... Chevron Phillips Chemical (CPChem) and Sumitomo Chemical say they will permanently shut down the polypropylene (PP) assets of their joint venture, Phillips Sumika Polypropylene, at Pasdena, TX. The jv has the capacity to produce about 700...

Patent reform law eliminates 'first to invent' test.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)
September 19, 2011... President Obama signed into law changes to the nation's patent process that major chemical firms say are important steps in streamlining the U.S. system and promoting innovation. The statute, the America Invents Act, also will remove financial...

DuPont and Monsanto fight for seed market share.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)
September 19, 2011... DuPont says market share gains in North America will boost earnings for its Pioneer Hi-Bred seed business. Based on U.S. Department of Agriculture data, the company says it added 1 percentage point share in corn and 4 points in soybeans. For...

Earnings estimates, guidance reflect softening economy.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)(Statistical data)
September 19, 2011... Deutsche Bank analysts have cut fourth-quarter 2011 and full-year 2012 earnings estimates for 20 chemical companies, reflecting slower demand growth and waning consumer confidence. Separately, Solutia has downgraded its full-year 2011 earnings...

Gevo files countersuit against DuPont over isobutanol patents.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)
September 19, 2011... Renewable fuels and chemicals firm Gevo (Englewood, CO) says it has P filed a countersuit against Butamax Advanced Biofuel (Wilmington, DE) and its affiliate DuPont, alleging Butamax infringed upon two recently granted Gevo patents covering...

Berkshire Hathaway closes Lubrizol acquisition.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: UNITED STATES/AMERICAS)
September 19, 2011... Berkshire Hathaway has completed its $9.7-billion acquisition of Lubrizol, giving Berkshire a foothold in specialty chemicals. Lubrizol, which will now operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway, will maintain its headquarters in...

Bayer unveils Agchem plans; ups pipeline estimates.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: EUROPE/MIDEAST)
September 19, 2011... Bayer CropScience, a leading agchem producer, has embarked on a strategy built around four growth pillars and says it is likely to exceed previously announced targets for its bioscience business and for the estimated value of its...

Yara to acquire BASF nitrogen fertilizer assets?(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: EUROPE/MIDEAST)
September 19, 2011... Yara International is at an advanced stage of negotiations to acquire most of BASF's nitrogen fertilizer assets, according to recent press reports. BASF put most of its nitrogen fertilizer business up for sale earlier this year (CW, March 7/14,...

Indorama acquires polyester fiber and recycling business.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: EUROPE/MIDEAST)(Indorama Ventures (Bangkok))(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Indorama Ventures (Bangkok) has agreed to acquire polyester fiber and recycling company Wellman International (Mullagh, Ireland) from industrial holding firm Aurelius (Munich) for an enterprise value of 42 million [euro] ($58 million). The deal...

Lanxess confirms full-year guidance.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: EUROPE/MIDEAST)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Lanxess has confirmed its full-year 2011 earnings estimates because of ongoing strong demand for synthetic rubbers. "As announced, we will increase our Ebitda pre-exceptionals by roughly 20%," says CEO Axel Heitmann. "The third quarter is going...

Linde builds Europe's largest on-site fluorine plant.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: EUROPE/MIDEAST)(Linde Gases)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Linde Gases, a Linde subsidiary, has announced plans to build Europe's largest on-site fluorine production unit. The fluorine plant will be built at the Grossrohrsdorf, Germany production site of Schuco TF, Germany's largest manufacturer of...

Lonza to list on Singapore stock exchange.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: ASIA/PACIFIC)
September 19, 2011... Lonza says it has submitted an application for a secondary share listing in Singapore. Lonza's shares will be listed on the main board of Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd. The listing, and the first day of trading, are expected in the...

Siam Cement to buy 30% stake in Chandra Asri for $416 million.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: ASIA/PACIFIC)
September 19, 2011... Siam Cement Group (SCG; Bangkok) says its SCG Chemicals subsidiary has entered into separate share-purchase agreements with Barito Pacific (Jakarta) and Apleton Investments, a wholly owned subsidiary of Temasek Holdings (Singapore), to acquire...

Formosa Petrochemical appoints ex-CPC boss as chairman.(BUSINESS & FINANCE NEWS: ASIA/PACIFIC)(Chen Baolung)
September 19, 2011... Formosa Petrochemical, part of the Formosa Plastics Group (FPG; Taipei), has appointed Chen Baolung as its new chairman, effective September 15. Chen succeeds Wilfred Wang, who resigned in late July following a series of fires at Formosa...

Tata selects Technip as EPC contractor for Gabon jv.(NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS)
September 19, 2011... Tata Chemicals has told the Bombay Stock Exchange that its Gabon Fertilizer Co. (GFC) joint venture has signed a "pre-construction services agreement" with Technip for a previously announced grassroots nitrogen fertilizer complex at Port Gentil,...

Jacobs awarded Ras Tanura refinery contract.(NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS)(Jacobs Engineering Group Inc.)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Jacobs Engineering has been awarded the second phase of the previously announced Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia refinery clean fuels and aromatics project by Saudi Aramco. The award covers general engineering and project management services. Jacobs is...

Petron refinery to maximize propylene output.(NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS)
September 19, 2011... Petron Corp. (Manila) has selected Axens to supply technologies for the Bataan Refinery upgrade 2 project at Bataan, the Philippines. The project aims to enable the refinery to process heavier crude to produce higher-quality products including...

Lanxess to expand thionyl chloride capacity in India.(NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Lanxess plans to increase capacity of thionyl chloride by 20% at its Nagda, India facility. The expansion is expected to be completed in the second half of 2012. The project will involve a single-digit million-euro investment, the company says....

Ineos licenses more polypropylene technology to China.(NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS)(Ineos Technologies)(Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group Co.)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Ineos Technologies has licensed its Innovene polypropylene (PP) process to Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group Co. (Ningxia, China), to be used in a 300,000-m.t./year plant at Ningxia. The unit will be designed to produce homo, random, and impact PP...

Praxair to build air separation plant at industrial estate in India.(NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS)(Praxair India)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Praxair India (Bangalore) plans to build an air separation plant in an industrial estate near Kalyan, India about 60 kilometers from Mumbai. The plant will have a capacity of 300 m.t./day and it will supply liquid oxygen, nitrogen, and argon to...

European petrochemicals.(Cover story)
September 19, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Demand for petrochemicals has slowed in Europe after a strong rebound in 2010 and early 2011, amid signs of a weakening global economy and growing sovereign debt concerns in the U.S. and Europe, as well as lower energy...

The international year of chemistry: raising the positive profile of the chemical sector: EPCA President and Ineos Group Director Tom Crotty shares his thoughts with CW's Ian Young.(EPCA)(Interview)
September 19, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Q. What, realistically, can the International Year of Chemistry (IYC) aim to achieve? How will its success be judged? A. I would hope that IYC can raise the positive profile of chemistry for the public, allowing them...

Targeting economically sustainable shipping.(EPCA)
September 19, 2011... The shipping industry is under increasing pressure from the public and governments to make its operations more sustainable and reduce its carbon footprint. An International Maritime Organization strategy to improve standards of ship design, and...

Integration brings major benefits.(EPCA)
September 19, 2011... Companies that possess refining and petrochemical businesses have a potentially lucrative source of competitive advantage: maximizing integration between refineries and petrochemical plants at their production complexes. Closer integration can...

Emerging markets present risks and rewards.(EPCA)
September 19, 2011... Investing in emerging markets such as China is potentially very rewarding for multinational chemical companies based in Europe and North America. High rates of economic growth, generated by growing populations and rising living standards,...

Clariant enters renewables market for cosmetic ingredients.(PERSONAL CARE)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Clariant's personal care unit has entered the renewable raw materials market through a long-term partnership with privately held biopolymers producer KitoZyme (Liege, Belgium). The deal includes plans for KitoZyme to manufacture biopolymers at...

Molycorp, Sumitomo nix funding deal.(RARE EARTHS)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Rare earth oxides producer Molycorp (Greenwood Village, CO) and P Sumitomo Corporation have decided to cancel plans for Sumitomo to purchase a $100-million equity stake in Molycorp. The terms of the deal had changed, and Molycorp, whose...

Innospec buys back shares.(SPECIALTIES)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Innospec says it has launched a share repurchase program worth $40 million. The program began September 12 and will remain in place through the end of the year. The company will repurchase shares on the open market.

Croda starts Delaware plant.(SPECIALTIES)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Croda has started production of a lubricant esters plant at New Castle, DE, boosting the sites total esters capacity by 15%, the company says. The site will now be able to manufacture lubricant-quality esters for high-end applications, including...

RPM wood coatings deal.(SPECIALTIES)(Fuhr Industrial)(RPM Wood Finishes Group )(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... RPM has acquired Fuhr Industrial (Mansfield, TX), a waterborne wood coatings and technology firm, the company says. Fuhr will become part of RPM's CCI industrial wood coatings unit within its wood finishes business. Terms of the deal were not...

Sika acquires Brazilian firm.(SPECIALTIES)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Sika (Baar, Switzerland) says it has agreed to acquire Colauto Adesivos e Massas (Sao Paulo, Brazil), a manufacturer of adhesives and sealants, as well as acoustic damping and structural reinforcement elements for the fast-growing automotive and...

Momentive expands tech center.(SPECIALTIES)(Momentive Specialty Chemicals Inc.)(Brief article)
September 19, 2011... Momentive Specialty Chemicals says it has expanded its North American chemical research center at Stafford, TX. The $3 million investment will enable Momentive to add 20 new research and technical roles at the site. The company says it plans to...

CW75 stock performance.
September 19, 2011... CW75 Index * September 20 232.14 Week ago 230.21 Quarter ago 277.11 Year ago 226.18 * Jan. 1, 2002 = 100 The CW75 Index rose 1% for the week ended September 20, lagging broader market indexes including the MSCI and the...

China leads petchems demand: world's largest market will continue its rapid expansion.(CONFERENCE)
September 19, 2011... China is "the driving force for global petrochemicals, and the country now stands as the world's largest petrochemicals market," Paul Pang, managing director, IHS CMAI (Shanghai), told delegates at the CMAI workshop: Outlook of the Global...

3rd Annual Sustainability Survey.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 5, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] CW, in association with consulting firm CSC, is running its 3rd Annual Compliance and Sustainability Survey. The survey is open to all CW readers and will form the basis for a story to be published October 31....

Ineos agrees to PP licence in China.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 5, 2011... Ineos has licensed its Innovene polypropylene (PP) process to Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group (Ningxia, China). chemweek.com/home/projects

DSM heads sustainability index.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 5, 2011... DSM has been rated the most sustainable chemicals company by the Dow Jones Sustainability Index. chemweek.com/sustainability

Adidas, Nike, Puma phase out discharge of hazardous chemicals.(CHEMWEEK.COM)(Adidas AG has joined Nike and Puma AG)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Adidas has joined Nike and Puma in a pledge to phase out releases of hazardous chemicals. All three companies have been linked to the discharge of hazardous chemicals into rivers in China. chemweek.com/sustainability

U.S. and EU olefins market mixed.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 5, 2011... North American feedstock prices were mixed at the start of September. Ethane fell about 0.5 cts/gal. chemweek.com/pricewatch

Weekly news round-up.(CHEMWEEK.COM)
September 5, 2011... CW now publishes an on-line round-up of the key news of the week, with analysis, every Friday. chemweek.com/chem_ideas

Most read stories online.(Chemweek 24 7)
September 5, 2011... As of CW press time on Thursday, Sept. 8. 1. Lanxess to Expand Thionyl Chloride Capacity 2. European Commission-Chemical Industry Relations Strengthen 3. Running with it: Adidas Joins Nike and Puma to Phase out Discharge of Hazardous...

Global shift.(VIEWPOINT)(Company rankings)
September 5, 2011... BASF takes the top spot in CW's annual ranking of chemical makers by revenue for the fifth year in a row, with revenues of $63.2 billion (p. 21). BASF has opened a $10-billion lead over Dow Chemical and ExxonMobil, which have held the second and...

Evonik doubles l-lysine.(Evonik Industries AG)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Evonik Industries says it is doubling capacity for L-lysine at Blair, NE. The two-phase expansion will lift capacity to 280,000 m.t./year by August 2012. "This investment further strengthens our significant market position in the feed additive...

Dow expands 2-ethyl.(Dow Chemical Co.)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Dow Chemical says its Performance Monomers business has increased 2-ethyl hexyl acrylate production at Hahnville, LA. The 15% expansion was achieved through debottlenecking. 2-ethyl hexyl acrylate is a key raw material used in the production of...

Ineos biofuel deal.(Air Products and Chemicals Inc. contract with Ineos PLC)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Air Products says it has been awarded a gas supply contract for Ineos Bio's waste-to-ethanol plant at Vero Beach, EL. The site is expected to start up in second quarter of 2012.

BASF catalytic coatings.(BASF Corp. partnership with Quantiam Technologies)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... BASF says it has formed a catalytic surface coatings company with Quantiam Technologies (Edmonton, Alberta) a manufacturer of advanced materials for extreme and critical-use applications. Terms were not disclosed.

UOP Hawaii biofuel plant.(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Honeywell says its UOP subsidiary has broken ground on a Hawaiian biomass-to-fuels demonstration facility at Tesoro's Kapolei refinery. The unit will begin initial production next year and be fully operational by 2014.

Linde to add nitrogen.(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Linde says it will increase nitrogen production at its Delta, OH air separation plant. The company will add 575 tons/day of nitrogen liquefier, which will capture spare molecules the plant is already producing. The liquefier is scheduled for...

Silicon wafer firm to build $600-million plant.(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Calisolar (Sunnyvale, CA) says it will build a 16,000 m.t./year polysilicon facility at Lowndes County, MS. The $600-million plant will be Calisolar's third production facility. The company also produces polysilicon at Sunnyvale and Vaughan, ON,...

SQM's profits and sales rise in second quarter.(Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A.'s financial news)(Financial report)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (SQM; Santiago) reported second-quarter net income of $132.2 million, up 26% from the same period last year. Sales rose 16%, to $551.7 million. Fertilizer, iodine and lithium demand growth remained healthy...

DOE awards funds for Dow solar project.(Department of Energy )(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded a $12.3 million grant to help fund a $22.4-million program led by Dow that seeks to reduce the cost of building integrated (BIPV) solar products. Dow Solar says it calculates its BIPV system will...

SGL, BMW start Moses Lake carbon fiber plant.(SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers)(BMW Group)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers, a joint venture of SGL Group (Wiesbaden, Germany) and BMW Group, started operations at its carbon fiber manufacturing plant in Moses Lake, WA last week. The previfacility will manufacture ultra lightweight carbon...

Univar acquires in Brazil.(Univar Corp. acquired with Arinos Quimica)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Univar says it has acquired Arinos Quimica (Osasco, Brazil), a specialty and commodity chemicals distributor, for an undisclosed sum. Arinos distributes about 1,600 products to more than 6,500 customers across various end markets, and also has...

Halliburton acquires oilfield chemicals maker Multi-Chem.(Halliburton Co. acquired with Multi-Chemical Products Inc.)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Halliburton says it has agreed to acquire Multi-Chem Group (San Angelo, TX), a provider of specialty oilfield chemicals and services, for an undisclosed sum. Multi-Chem has about 750 employees and 900 customers, and is the fourth-largest...

ECHA begins consultation on 20 potential substances of very high concern.(European Chemicals Agency)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... Several European Union (EU) member states and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA; Helsinki) have proposed adding 20 chemicals to the Registration, Evaluation, and Authorisation of Chemicals (Reach) candidate list of Substances of Very High...

Total to merge refinery and Petchem operations?(Financial report)(Brief article)
September 5, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Total is planning to merge its refinery and petrochemical businesses, according to a report by French newspaper Les Echos, citing trade union sources. The move, which is due to be announced this fall, forms part of a...