Chemical Week back issues from May 2002:
HS&E becomes HSS&E. (Viewpoint).(health, safety, and environment functions become health, safety, security, and environment functions as chemical companies respond to World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks)(Brief Article)(Column)
May 01, 2002 ... The security issue is giving the Responsible Care program in the U.S. a shot in the arm, to judge from the 40% rise in attendance, to 425, at ACC's annual Responsible Care conference in Miami last week. Probably because ACC has framed its main security initiative within Responsible Care, ...
Eastman, Solutia report sequential earnings improvement. (News Briefs).(first-quarter earning reports)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Eastman Chemical and Solutia both reported a decline in first-quarter earnings, compared to the same period last year, but they say results improved compared to fourth-quarter 2001. Eastman reported first-quarter earnings of $24 million, excluding one-time charges, a decline of 35% from ...
Nova nears decision on Methanex stake. (News Briefs).(Nova Chemicals considering sell its 37% interest)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Nova Chemicals says it will decide by the end of June whether to sell its 37% stake in Methanex. "We've made a commitment to complete that review by the end of this quarter," says Nova president and CEO Jeffrey Lipton. The sale could generate proceeds of $365 million, based on Methanex's ...
Senate votes to promote corn-based ethanol. (News Briefs).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... The Senate has voted to require that a total of 5 billion gal of U.S. gasoline is made with corn-based ethanol and other renewable fuels by 2012. The requirement responds to a provision that allows states to opt out of a controversial federal mandate for 2% oxygenates by weight in ...
Shaw nabs IT group. (News Briefs).(Shaw Group acquires IT Group)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... The Shaw Group (Baton Rouge, LA) says it has received bankruptcy court approval for its acquisition of the IT Group (Monroeville, PA) (CW, April 24, p. 12). The purchase price is estimated at $160 ...
Cydsa maintains PVC production at Mexico city. (News Briefs).(polyvinyl chloride)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Cydsa (Monterrey, Mexico) says it will not reduce polyvinyl chloride (PVC) capacity in Mexico. Analysts had predicted that Cydsa would shift production from its 40,000-m.t./year plant near Mexico city, to its 210,000-m.t./year unit at Altamira (CW, April 3, p.10). ...
Bayer shuts two units in Canada. (News Briefs).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Bayer says it will close a butyl rubber plant and a butadiene rubber unit at Samia, ON by the fall, clung overcapacity and poor margins. The company did not disclose the capacities of the units. The closure will result in 300 job losses. Bayer says it will ...
Enterprise raises stake in fractionator. (News Briefs).(Enterprise Products acquires ChevronTexaco stake)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002 ... Enterprise Products has acquired ChevronTexaco's 12.5% stake in a natural gas liquids (NGL) fractionator at Mont Belvieu, TX. Terms were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close later this quarter, subject to FTC approval. The sale is part of the FTC's conditions for approval of ...
ISP acquires granule operation. (News Briefs).(International Specialty Products acquires Reed Minerals granule manufacturing business)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... International Specialty Products (ISP) says that it has acquired the lone, CA-based rooftop granule manufacturing business of Reed Minerals, a division of Harsco (Camp Hill, PA). In a related transaction, the company says it has also acquired the adjacent quarry operations and certain ...
Hernandez receives SFO award. (News Briefs).(William Hernandez receives 2002 Financial Officer of the Year award)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... PPG Industries CFO William Hemandez has been selected as CW's 2002 Financial Officer of the Year. The selection committee was comprised of ...
IOC names price for IPCL stake. (News Briefs).(Indian Oil Corp. ready to pay 10 billion rupees for Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd.)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) is prepared to bid up to Rs10 billion ($204 million) to acquire a 26% stake in Indian Petrochemicals Corp. Ltd. (IPCL) from the Indian government, sources say. IOC is competing against Reliance ...
AP, Technip extend hydrogen pact. (News Briefs).(Air Products and Chemicals, TechnipCoflexip)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Air Products and Chemicals (AP) and TechnipCoflexip have extended, for 10 years, a collaboration agreement to supply hydrogen plants to refiners. Technip-Coflexip designs and constructs ...
PCAS halts acquisition program. (News Briefs).(Produits Chimiques Auxillaires et de Synthese)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Produits Chimiques Auxillaires et de Synthese (PCAS; Longjumeau, France) says it has temporarily halted its acquisition program, which has left the company [euro]86 million ($77 million) in debt. The company last year acquired fine chemicals ...
Toyo Ink issues profits warning. (News Briefs).(Toyo Ink estmate for fiscal year ended March 31, 2002)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Toyo Ink (Tokyo) has downgraded its net profit estimate for its fiscal year ended March 31, to [yen]800 million ($6 million), compared with its ...
Ciba forges additives linkup. (News Briefs).(Ciba Specialty Chemicals signs Asahi Denka Kogyo distribution agreement)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Ciba Specialty Chemicals and Asahi Denka Kogyo (ADK; Tokyo) have signed a distribution agreement for one of ADK's nucleating agents. Ciba and ADK ...
Kemira spins off pesticides unit. (News Briefs).(Verdera)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Kemira has spun off its biological pesticides business into a wholly owned ...
Bayer increases cost cuts as profits tumble. (News Briefs).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002 ... Bayer says it has increased its estimate of annualized cost savings that will result from the company's previously announced restructuring from [euro]1.8 billion ($1.6 billion), to [euro]2 billion, by 2005 (CW, March 20, p. 9). The company expects to achieve annualized savings of [euro]500 ...
Other firms see earnings bottoming out. (News Briefs).(chemical industry sales)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002 ... Akzo Nobel posted a rise in first-quarter earnings and sales, but several other leading companies in Europe and the Mideast reported weaker results (table). Most companies say their results improved from the previous quarter, however. Akzo's performance was underpinned by its ...
Sita to buy Rhodia's stake in waste JV. (News Briefs).(acquires Tens S.A. and Tens L.L.C. joint ventures)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Sita (Nanterre, France), the waste services division of Suez (Paris), has agreed to acquire Rhodia's 50% stake in the companies' Tens SA and Tens LLC joint ventures, effective July 1. Tens SA and Tens LLC specialize in processing hazardous industrial waste in ...
BASF buys animal health product from Hydro. (News Briefs).(Hydro Formates)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... BASF has acquired the rights to Formi, an alternative to feed antibiotics for use in pig breeding, from Hydro Formates, a subsidiary of Norsk Hydro. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Formi last year became the first non-antibiotic product for animal nutrition to be approved in the ...
First-quarter earnings hint at recovery. (Top of the Week).(in the chemical industry)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... First-quarter earnings have been in line with upwardly revised expectations, and Several basic chemical makers say they are confident that they have passed the bottom of the current economic cycle. Earnings and volume comparisons with the year-ago quarter remained weak for most companies, ...
Senate vote saves cogeneration, blocks superfund tax. (Top of the Week).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... The Senate last week voted to block the repeal of an electricity law that promotes cogeneration, marking a major victory for chemical industry lobbyists. The vote was held during the final hours of debate on comprehensive energy legislation, which senators approved. Lawmakers will now try ...
Specialties firms have a mixed first quarter. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(specialty chemical financials reports)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... First-quarter earnings were mixed for specialty chemical companies. Cambrex, International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF), Lubrizol, Noveon, OM Group, Sensient Technologies, and Stepan reported increases in net income. Ecolab, Ferro, and W.R. Grace's earnings were down, however, and Hexcel ...
Airgas, Praxair settle suit. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Airgas says it has settled litigation brought by Praxair, relating to Airgas' formation of a joint venture with National Welders Supply (Charlotte, NC) in 1996. Praxair alleged "tortious interference" with a right of first refusal to purchase National Welders held by ...
Valspar completes bond sale. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002 ... Valspar has completed the sale of five-year bonds, valued at $350 ...
Forbo completes Swift deal. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(Forbo Holding acquires Swift Adhesives from Reichhold)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Reichhold says it has completed the sale of its $250-million/year Swift adhesives unit to Forbo Holding (Zurich) ...
Low petrochemical earnings hurt oil makers. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(ExxonMobil,ChevronTexaco, Phillips Petroleum)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Poor margins continued to hamper petrochemical earnings at U.S. oil majors. ExxonMobil says first-quarter chemical earnings slipped 34%, to $132 million, on sales down 19%, to $43 billion. "Chemicals earnings declined despite higher sales volumes, which exceeded the record first-quarter ...
ACC, U.S. government set up Information-Sharing forum. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... ACC signed an agreement last week with the federal government's National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC; Washington) to establish a chemical sector Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAC), a forum for the federal government and industry to exchange security information (CW, ...
Tyco scraps sale of plastics business; abandons plans for breakup. (Business & Finance News: United States/Americas).(Tyco International)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Tyco International (Exeter, NH) has scrapped plans to sell its plastics unit and split itself into four separate public companies (CW, Jan. 30, p. 8). Chairman and CEO Dennis Kozlowski says the proposal to split the company was "a mistake." The company will, however, spin off its CIT ...
Industry needs best practices for e-business.(according to David Kepler, Dow Chemical)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... The chemical industry must develop common standards and "best practices" for e-business to gain efficiencies, improve safety, and enhance sustainability, says David Kepler, v.p./e-business and CIO at Dow Chemical. One area requiring industry input is the Chemical Industry Data Exchange ...
Chavez names new Pdvsa board.(Hugo Chanves names Ali Rodriguez head of Petroleos de Venezuela)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has appointed former OPEC secretary general Ali Rodriguez as head of state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa; Caracas). Rodriguez, a former guerrilla fighter and staunch Chavez ally, reluctantly left OPEC to help smooth over dissent at the Oil ...
Wacker posts 2001 loss, but says markets are recovering. (Business & Finance News: Europe/Mideast).(Wacker-Chemie)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Wacker-Chemie reported an after-tax loss of [euro]67 million ($58 million) for 2001, its first loss in 50 years, on an 8% sales drop, to [euro]2.8 billion. The company reported a net profit of [euro]2.57 million in 2000. Wacker blamed the declines on the economic downturn and a slump in ...
Norway may cut Hydro stake. (Business & Finance News).(Norwegian government, Norsk Hydro)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... The Norwegian government says it may reduce its stake in Norsk ...
South African firm spins off unit. (Business & Finance News).(pelchem creates Peldev)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Pelchem (Pelindaba, South Africa) has created a separate technology and product ...
Sika's profits tumble. (Business & Finance News).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002 ... Sika (Baar, Switzerland) reported a 43% decrease in 2001 net profits, to SF60 million ($36 million), on sales up ...
Dow's PU boss relocates to Europe. (Business & Finance News).(Dow Chemical, David Fischer)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... David Fischer, v.p./polyurethanes (PU) at Dow Chemical, has relocated from Midland, MI to the company's ...
Storage unit opens in UAE. (Business & Finance News).(Chemstores opens chemical storage facility in United Arab Emirates)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Chemstore, a joint venture between Emirates National Oil (Dubai) and Modern Freight (Dubai), has opened a hazmat ...
Cefic presents alternative to reach. (Business & Finance News: Europe/Mideast).(Registration Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... Cefic has completed a three-month pilot chemical testing program that, it says, could be developed into a simplified, low-cost alternative to the European Commission's proposed Registration Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (Reach). Reach forms a key part of the commission's ...
Vopak to spin off distribution business; plans share offering.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Vopak has confirmed plans to separate its chemical distribution business from its tank storage and other logistics operations (CW, Feb. 13, p. 16). The company says it will spin off its [euro]4.8-billion ($4.3 billion)/year distribution business to shareholders by the end of June, subject ...
Chemical Week puts the CFO on center stage.
May 01, 2002 ... Today You Face Special Challenges As the industry eagerly awaits signs of a turnaround, many companies are restructuring debt, positioning themselves to remain competitive and preparing for the inevitable upswing. For six years, Chemical Week's Senior Financial Officer (SFO) ...
BASF plans THF and PolyTHF investment in China. (Business & Finance News: Asia/Pacific).(tetrahydrofuran)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... BASF says it plans to build an integrated plant to produce tetrahydrofuran (THF) and polyTHF at Caojing, China. The unit will have capacity for 80,000-m.t./ year THF and 60,000-m.t./year polyTHF, making it the world's largest polyTHF unit, BASF says. Completion is scheduled for 2004 ....
Shanghai Petrochemical completes ethylene expansion project. (Business & Finance News: Asia/Pacific).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Shanghai Petrochemical, a Sinopec subsidiary, says it has started up a 300,000-m.t./year ethylene expansion at its Shanghai complex. The expansion takes total ethylene capacity at the site to 700,000 m.t./year, the company says. The project was mechanically completed last December. ...
Shareholders approve Reliance merger. (Business & Finance News).(Reliance Industries, Reliance Petroleum)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Shareholders of Reliance Industries and Reliance Petroleum have approved the companies' previously announced merger plans (CW, March 13, p. 13). The merged entity will have sales of $12 billion/year, making it India's biggest private sector company. Reliance Industries, ...
Ashland, AUEC team in China. (Business & Finance News).(Ashland Specialty Chemical, Ashland Union Electronic Chemical)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Ashland Specialty Chemical has formed an alliance with Ashland Union Electronic Chemical (AUEC), a jv between Ashland and Union Petrochemical Corp. (Taipei), to market electronic chemicals in greater China. AUEC will be responsible ...
Jilin Chemical's losses mount. (Business & Finance News).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Jilin Chemical Industrial (Jilin, China) says its net losses more than doubled in 2001, to Rmb1.8 billion ($217 million), on sales down 7%, to Rmb12.5 billion. The company cites weak domestic demand and ...
Russian Fertilizer firm buys in China. (Business & Finance News).(Akron to acquire 58% stake in Shandong Chemical Fertilizer)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Akron (Novgorod, Russia), a producer of nitrogen fertilizers, has agreed to acquire a 58% stake in ammonia and urea ...
Malaysia-Saudi Shipping JV. (Business & Finance News).(Malaysia International Shipping Corp., Bakri Navigation Co.)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Malaysia International Shipping Corp. (MISC; Kuala Lumpur) and Bakri Navigation Co. (BNC; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia) have agreed to form a shipping joint venture to transport petrochemicals on behalf of Sabic. MISC and BNC will build, own, ...
Kumho P&B expands phenol and cumene production at Yeochon. (New Construction Projects).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Kumho P&B Chemicals, a joint venture between Kumho Group (Seoul) and Nippon Steel (Tokyo), says it plans to increase phenol and cumene capacily at Yeochon, Korea. The project will lift cumene capacity by 330,000 m.t./year, to 420,000 m.t./year, and phenol capacity by 150,000 m.t./year, to ...
Basell, BP, Univation prepare Mexican PE bids. (New Construction Projects).(Petroleos Mexicanos)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Basell, BP, and Univation are evaluating bids for the 300,000 m.t./ year high density poiyethylene (PE) and linear low PE unit being planned by state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex; Mexico City) at Morelos (CW, March 27, p. 7). Fluor Daniel, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Technip, ...
Technip-Coflexip, Snamprogetti win Oman Fertilizer contract. (New Construction Projects).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... A 50-50 partnership of Technip-Coflexip and Snamprogetti has signed a $770-million lump sum turnkey contract with Oman India Fertilizer Co. (Omfico; Muscat) for design and construction of a previously announced ammonia-urea complex at Sur, Oman (CW, Dec. 12, 2001, p. 21). Omfico is a ...
Egyptian firm to create JV for propane dehydro unit. (New Construction Projects).(Oriental Petrochemical Co. announces joint venture project)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Oriental Petrochemical Co. (OPC; Cairo) says it will from a joint venture to construct a previously announced propane dehydrogenation unit at Suez, Egypt (CW, Jan. 30, p. 16). OPC and its Oriental Weavers Group (Cairo) affiliate will each own a portion of the new company's equity. Egyptian ...
Saudi Government approves Chevron Phillips project. (New Construction Projects).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... The government of Saudi Arabia has issued three licenses for construction of a recently announced second aromatics unit at Chevron Phillips Chemical's complex at Al Jubail, Saudi Arabia (CW, Apr. 17, p. 9). The project is a joint venture ...
ExxonMobil breaks ground on metallocene elastomers project. (New Construction Projects).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding has started work on the previously announced expansion of ExxonMobil Chemical's ethylene-based metallocene elastomers plant at Baton Rouge, LA, ExxonMobil says (CW, ...
BP awards contract to Jacobs for emission reductions. (New Construction Products).(BP Chemicals, Jacobs Engineering)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... BP Chemicals has awarded Jacobs Engineering an engineering procurement services contract to reduce nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from three BP chemical complexes in Texas: Chocolate Bayou, Texas City, ...
Philippine cracker study due for completion by June. (New Construction Products).(Philippine National Oil Co. )(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC; Manila) says it hopes to complete a feasibility study for a previously announced 600,000-m.t./year ethylene plant at Mariveles, the Philippines by June (CW, Feb. 21, 2001, p. 18). PNOC says that the study will ...
Kvaerner wins contract for Chinese Polyacetal Project. (New Construction Products).(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Kvaerner has won a $23-million contract to design and build a 20,OOO-m.t./year polyacetal copolymer plant at Zhangjiagang, China (CW, Apr. 3, p. 15). The previously announced ...
Water Treatment: Pouring on the service. (Cover Story).(water treatment chemicals industry overview)(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
May 01, 2002; ... Hope springs eternal in the water treatment industry, despite the effects of an economic slowdown that has added to the pressure from customers for lower prices, new ways to reduce processing costs, global supply networks, and increased onsite service. The turbulence among companies ...
2002 Water treatment directory.(Directory)
May 01, 2002 ... PAPER CHEMICALS EKA CHEMICALS EKA CHEMICALS AB Bohus, Sweden SE-445 80 Tel: 46-31-58-70-00 Fax: 46-31-58-74-00 E-mail: eka@bhs.ekachemicals.com WWW: www.ekachemicals.com Eka Chemicals, a business ...
FDA batch rule: the next Y2K? (Electronic Data Storage).(pharmaceutical and fine chemical firms must make significant changes to batch control systems)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... Batch control vendors can expect an increase in business as a result of an FDA rule that requires pharmaceutical and fine chemical firms to make significant changes to their batch control systems and related work processes (CW, April 24, p. 27). FDA has stepped up enforcement of the 1997 ...
Foamed metal oxides make for higher activity. (Innovation: Catalysis).(foamed vanadium pentoxide catalyst)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... Researchers from the Universite Paris say they have developed a simple method to make a foamed form of vanadium pentoxide that dramatically improves its effectiveness as a catalyst. The material contains nanoscale tubes of vanadium, which vastly increases the surface area for catalyzing ...
Shape-memory biomedical polymers launched. (Innovation: Research).(Institute for Technical and Macromolecular Chemistry and Massachusetts Institute of Technology develop shape-memory biodegradable polymer)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002; ... Scientists from the Institute for Technical and Macromolecular Chemistry (ITMC; Aachen, Germany) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT; Cambridge) have developed a shape-memory biodegradable polymer that they say could have wideranging medical applications. The researchers ...
Dow teams with Cyclics for CBT. (Innovation).(Dow Chemical and Cyclics to jointly develop cyclic butylene terephthalate)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Dow Chemical says it has formed an alliance with Cyclics (Schenectady, NY) to develop Cyclics' cyclic butylene terephthalate (CBP resins for automotive applications. The resins are being targeted for use in structural composites, ...
Strengthens alkoxylation R&D. (Innovation).(Dow Chemical)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Dow Chemical says it has has created an R&D team specializing in alkoxylation within its industrial chemicals business. The team will focus on product development and ...
ChevronTexaco buys fuel cell assets. (Innovation).(forms subsidiary)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures says it has acquired certain assets of fuel cell firm Dais-Analytic (Odessa, FL), including a facility at Woburn, MA that develops fuel reforming and ...
Ciba links with mideast university. (Innovation).(Ciba Specialty Chemicals and King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals)(Brief Article)
May 01, 2002 ... Ciba Specialty Chemicals says it has signed a collaborative agreement with the King Fahd, University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM; Dahran, Saudi ...