Nitrogen & Methanol articles from January 2001

Nitrogen & Methanol archives from January 2001

The shape of things to come.(global chemical sector)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... The turn of a new year is a traditional point to look both forwards and backwards, and especially so the turn of a new century. What will our industry look like in 2010? This is a question that has been exercising many people in recent months,...

Tight supply leads to price surge.(ammonia)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... In Russia and the Ukraine, technical problems and gas supply difficulties caused outages that exacerbated a situation already problematic due to high demand and plant outages. Yuzhnyy loaded 277,000 tonnes of ammonia during October, and Yuzhnyy...

Urea prices remain in the doldrums.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Latin American buying supported a slight rise at Yuzhnyy at the start of October, with price levels of up to $118/t. f.o.b seen. However, urea prices slid back to $100/t over the course of the month. November saw more losses, with prices...

Gas costs and shutdowns keep prices high.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... The November contract natural gas price for the USGC settled to a calculated average for Texas and Louisiana of $4.59/mmBtu. This represented a $0.78/mmBtu Decrease from October's $5.37/mmBtu and a further decrease of $0.11/mmBtu from...

Profertil teething troubles continue.(closes urea plant at Bahia Blanca, Argentina, due to ammonia leak)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Profertil's new 1,100,000 t/a urea facility at Bahia Blanca has turned out to be shut down for longer than anticipated following a second ammonia leak from the complex. The plant suffered the first leak in August 2000, during commissioning of...

Europe needs a strong fertilizer industry, says EFMA.(European Fertilizer Manufacturers' Association)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... In a speech in Brussels marking the organisation's general assembly, European Fertilizer Manufacturers' Association (EFMA) president Jean-Louis Besson argued that European agriculture needs a strong European fertilizer industry, and that the...

Chimco shuts down after gas price hike.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Bulgarian fertilizer manufacturer Chimco has shut down following several months of successive gas price rises, culminating in a 16% price hike in November. With the cost of natural gas having risen over 10 months from $2.90/mmBtu to $4.5...

State fertilizer programme axed.(Ukraine)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... The Ukrainian government has ended its programme of state-sponsored deliveries of fertilizer to local farmers. The programme, operating via a barter deal with state grain marketer Khleb Ukrainy, paid fertilizer producers for deliveries to...

Revamp programme for N plants.(Mezregiongaz and Interchimprom's nitrogen fertilizer plants, Russia)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... Gazprom subsidiaries Interchimprom and Mezregiongaz are planning a programme of revamps to increase capacity at five fertilizer plants at Novomoskovsk, Berezniki, Cherepovets, Perm and KirovoChepetsk, which between them represent 40% of...

Chambal exits Plenty River.(Chambal Chemicals and Fertilizers' contract with Plenty River Corp.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Chambal Chemicals and Fertilizers has terminated its memorandum of understanding with the Plenty River Corporation over the projected 600,000 t/a ammonia and 726,000 t/a urea plants which the two companies were planning to construct on the...

Atofina expands urea formaldehyde production.(in France)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... TotalFinaElf subsidiary Atofina is to expand formaldehyde and urea formaldehyde production at its Villers St Paul site in France. The project will include a new 60,000 t/a formaldehyde plant, and expansions to urea formaldehyde resins capacity...

UK N use falls again.(nitrogen fertilizers, 1999-2000)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... The British Survey of Fertilizer Practise report shows that fertilizer use for the 1999/2000 season fell again to its lowest level since 1992/3. Overall nitrogen application rates fell by 3kg/ha on field crops, although they increased by 1kg/ha...

Fine for ammonia leak.(TriState Food)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... TriState Food of Dothan, Alabama has been fined $95,000 by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for an ammonia leak on April 11th 2000. The leak occurred from a piping system carrying ammonia to a fertilizer manufacturing...

Topsoe to oversee Kuwait revamp.(Haldor Topsoe, remodeling of PIC's ammonia plant)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Denmark's Haldor Topsoe has been selected as a consultant for the $30m revamp of PIC's No.2 ammonia plant. Contractors have been invited to prequalify for the 12 month project, which will raise production from 265,000 t/a to 290,000 t/a.

India to sell state shares.(in National Fertilizers Ltd. and Madras Fertilizers Ltd.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... The Indian government is to sell its 51% stake in National Fertilizers Ltd (NFL) and its 33% share of Madras Fertilizers Ltd (MFL). NFL makes 2.8m t/a of urea and 320,000 t/a of CAN. MFL produces 350,000 t/a of ammonia and 840,000 t/a of NPKs.

Orica enters new joint ventures.(with Kimit and Dyno Nobel)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Australian-based explosives producer Orica has signed up to two new joint ventures. The first is with Kimit, a supplier of iron ore pellet products, to manufacture, supply and distribute commercial explosives in Scandinavia. The second, with...

Hainan plans push forward again.(China National Offshore Oil Co. to build ammonia-urea facility on Hainan Island, China)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... The China National Offshore Oil Co (CNOOC) has dusted off plans for an 800,000 t/a ammonia-urea complex on Hainan Island, and has invited bids from engineering companies to construct the facility. Four companies have agreed to bid for the 3bn...

A MESSAGE FROM THE PUBLISHER.(of Nitrogen & Methanol magazine on British Sulphur Publishing's management issues)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... Dear reader, No business can afford to stand still, and ours is no exception. Over the coming year, you will see a rolling programme of change at British Sulphur Publishing, as we expand our web-based facilities. I can share with you that...

New nitric acid plant.(Kemira Arab Potash Co., Jordan)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Technip subsidiary Krebs Speichim has won a $17m turnkey contract to build a new nitric acid plant at Aqaba in Jordan for the Kemira Arab Potash Co (Kemapco), a 5050 joint venture between Kemira Oy and Jordan Arab Potash. The 115,000 t/a plant,...

New urea complex for Assaluyeh.(Iran)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Iran's National Petrochemical Company is soon to tender for a massive ammonia-urea plant in the Bandar Assaluyeh special economic zone. The complex is to include a 675,000 t/a ammonia and 1.1m t/a urea plant, fed from gas being landed from the...

Gas prices force more shutdowns.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... A cold snap in the US has pushed gas prices from their level of $5--6.00/mmBtu to $8--9/mmBtu, forcing shutdowns of several more nitrogen plants. Most US plants are now idled -- it is more profitable to temporarily close down the plant and sell...

Unocal cleared of Burma abuses.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... A US federal judge has cleared Unocal of charges connected with the construction of a pipeline to Thailand in 1996. The case had been brought by 15 Burmese villagers who claimed Unocal was responsible for forced labour, torture and forced...

LETTER TO THE EDITOR.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... The author of your article 'Keeping it Safe' in the Sept/Oct issue does your magazine a disservice by referring to a grade of ammonium nitrate as "explosive grade... now ubiquitously referred to by the politically correct euphemism 'low density...

Gas prices go through the roof.(use of liquefied natural gas)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... US natural gas prices surpassed the most apocalyptic predictions of industry in early December by passing $9/mmBtu for a brief period. With gas costs alone representing over $270/t of ammonia or methanol produced, mass shutdowns of North...

New mega methanol plant.(in Oman)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... The Omani government has given the green light to the construction of a massive methanol plant at the northern port of Sohar. The $500m, 1.65m t/a project is being developed by the Oman Oil Company in conjunction with firm Omar Zawawi...

Feedstock problems lead to naphtha substitution.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers (RCF) is to install a naphtha prereformer to its ammonia-urea complex in Thal, Maharishtra, due to persistent natural gas supply problems. RCF is looking to increase urea capacity at Thal to 2.2m t/a by the...

ICI sells methanol business to Methanex; plant to close.(Imperial Chemical Industries PLC)(Methanex Corp.)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... The ongoing restructuring of the methanol industry continues; ICI has disposed of its European methanol business -- most of it in the UK -- to Canadian major Methanex for $14m. The business includes supply contracts, a loading terminal,...

Vopak to buy Ellis & Everard.(Ellis and Everard PLC)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... Dutch logistics and distribution group Vopak is to buy UK-based chemicals distributor Ellis & Everard for [pound]310m. Once the sale is approved by Vopak's shareholders, Ellis & Everard will become part of the company's chemical distribution...

Necar 5 launched.(electric car by DaimlerChrysler AG)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... DaimlerChrysler has finally launched the New Electric Car ('Necar') 5, a Mercedes 'A'-Class powered by a methanol reforming fuel cell. The Necar 5 is a modified version of the Necar 3, seen in previous issues of this magazine, adapted for more...

New fuel cell strategic alliance.(Methanex Corp.)(Mitsubishi)(Mitsui)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... After its strategic alliances in Europe and North America, Methanex has turned to Japan to promote the merits of methanol fuel cell powered vehicles. The company has entered into a strategic alliance with Japanese companies Mitsubishi and...

Sabic announces new acetic acid process.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Sabic is to build a new 30,000 t/a acetic acid plant using its own home-grown technology, having failed to obtain a process licence from other sources. The Sabic Acetic Acid Technology is based on ethane oxidation, using a patented...

Shell, Exxon and BP to take Sinopec stake.(Shell Oil Co., ExxonMobil Corp.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Western oil and gas giants are all keenly interested in the forthcoming sell-off of 15-20% of Sinopec shares in a New York and Hong Kong IPO, expected to raise the company $3bn. ExxonMobil has signed up for $lbn of shares, and Shell and BP...

Gazprom seeks to cut out Ukraine.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Russian gas major Gazprom has involved four western companies in a feasibility study into constructing a $2bn pipeline that would enable the company to supply southeastern Europe without having to rely on transit of the Ukraine. Gaz de France,...

Putin continues campaign against Gazprom.(Vladimir Putin)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Russian president Vladimir Putin is continuing his struggle against the so-called oligarchs of Russia's economy, and in particular the massive gas conglomerate Gazprom. Concerns have now been raised about past and possibly continuing asset...

High oil prices drive GTL proposals.(gas to liquids)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... The past few months have seen a whole raft of new gas to liquids (GTL) proposals, as oil prices have hovered around $30/bbl. Shell has been most active in pushing new projects, using its own Middle Distillate Synthesis process (SMDS), following...

People.(appointments)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2001... Douglas Pertz has been elected chairman of IMG Global's board, succeeding non-executive chairman Joseph Sullivan. Pertz was already president and CEO of IMC Global. Athol Trickett has left Kvaerner Chemetics to become president of the...

Anti-dumping and the WTO.(World Trade Organization)
January 1, 2001... There can be few more contentious issues within the global fertilizer industry than that of so-called 'dumping' and other alleged unfair practises. This article reviews the WTO rules on applying measures against 'dumping'. While it is a...

A step change in production capacity.(2000 World Methanol Conference)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... The world methanol industry gathered in Copenhagen last November at a time when methanol prices had defied predictions once again, and were soaring back above $230/t. While the industry was pleased about the development, the question was: how...

Nitrogen 2001.
January 1, 2001... The Nitrogen 2001 International Conference and Exhibition -- this year's meeting in an annual series organised by British Sulphur Publishing, will be held at the Hyatt Regency Westshore, Tampa, Florida, USA, from Sunday 18th February to...

Up and running in record time.(Egyptian Fertilizers Company Suez facility)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2001... Nitrogen & Methanol visited the new EFC ammonia/urea plant at Suez, quite fortuitously on the day the first urea granules were produced. The rapid completion of this project is a considerable achievement both for its owners and for the...

Ibn Zahr weighs up the options.(SABIC, Saudi Arabian Basic Industries Corp.)
January 1, 2001... Nitrogen & Methanol takes a look at SABIC's methyl tert-butyl ether manufacturing subsidiary, Ibn Zahr. As history threatens to repeat itself with the strongest upsurge in oil prices seen since the oil shocks of the 1970s, it is salutary to...

The sky's the limit ...?(Ammonia usage and future applications)
January 1, 2001... Ammonia-urea plants have tended to grow larger over the years in response to structural changes in the industry and its markets and to take advantage of economies of scale. But how much bigger can they get? The synthesis of ammonia was...