The Urethane Blog
Everchem Updates
VOLUME XXI
September 14, 2023
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October 8, 2021
Recticel acknowledges the approval by the FSMA of the prospectus of Greiner
Occasional information, Brussels, 06/10/2021 — 19:27 CET, 06.10.2021
The Board of Directors has received notice from the FSMA that it has approved the prospectus of Greiner AG in relation to its unsolicited voluntary public takeover bid on the outstanding shares of Recticel for EUR 13.50 per share in cash.
Recticel remains of the view that the bid of Greiner does not address the position and legitimate interests of all stakeholders, and in addition substantially undervalues the company. The Board of Directors has commissioned a fairness opinion with KBC Securities NV and meanwhile has received a fairness opinion letter of KBC Securities NV stating its opinion that the announced bid price of EUR 13.50 per share offered by Greiner under the voluntary tender offer is not fair to the shareholders of the Company from a financial point of view.
Recticel continues to actively review its strategic alternatives taking into account the interest of all stakeholders.
The Board of Directors of Recticel will review the approved prospectus and react with a response memorandum within the appropriate time frame.
https://www.recticel.com/recticel-acknowledges-approval-fsma-prospectus-greiner.html
October 8, 2021
Asia ADA markets face supply uncertainty amid China’s dual control policy
Author: Jasmine Khoo
2021/10/07
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Asia’s adipic acid (ADA) markets face supply uncertainty amid operating rate cuts in China due to the dual control policy. Volatility in the feedstock benzene markets has also put pressure on ADA production. Firm pricing in the related methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) markets has also dented ADA buyers’ confidence. In the seasonal downstream lull, buyers have also remained on the sidelines due to a lack of buying urgency.
- Feedstock benzene exerts pressure on ADA amid gains
- Seasonal lull plagued cargo uptake in Asia in Q3
- Asia MDI supply snug on planned maintenance
In this podcast, Jasmine Khoo speaks with editor Zhi Xuan Ho about recent developments in the Asian ADA market.
October 8, 2021
Asia ADA markets face supply uncertainty amid China’s dual control policy
Author: Jasmine Khoo
2021/10/07
SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Asia’s adipic acid (ADA) markets face supply uncertainty amid operating rate cuts in China due to the dual control policy. Volatility in the feedstock benzene markets has also put pressure on ADA production. Firm pricing in the related methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) markets has also dented ADA buyers’ confidence. In the seasonal downstream lull, buyers have also remained on the sidelines due to a lack of buying urgency.
- Feedstock benzene exerts pressure on ADA amid gains
- Seasonal lull plagued cargo uptake in Asia in Q3
- Asia MDI supply snug on planned maintenance
In this podcast, Jasmine Khoo speaks with editor Zhi Xuan Ho about recent developments in the Asian ADA market.
October 8, 2021
Coal For Christmas
by Tyler DurdenThursday, Oct 07, 2021 – 02:40 PM
Authored by Fortis Analysis via Human Terrain (emphasis ours),
In mid-April 2021, I began receiving reports from sources in China and the United States that certain regions in China had begun to experience ongoing power disruptions at their warehouses and manufacturing facilities. Most notable of these was in south China’s Guangdong megaregion, where in June operations at the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant had become disrupted by a small number of faulty claddings for the fuel rods, ultimately forcing state-owned General Nuclear Power Group to shut down Unit 1 (there are two units) for maintenance and repair. Concurrently, available power imported to the Guangdong region from Yunnan province’s considerable hydroelectric capacity was reduced due to drier-than-expected weather throughout the spring.
Taken together, some estimates are that total power available to the region fell by as much as 15% by June. In response, officials began quietly rationing power to factories, cutting business operation days by 1 or 2 days depending on the facilities’ power requirements.
In recent weeks, however, officials have begun a much more aggressive rationing program (Figure 1), with factories in much of Guangdong now seeing only 1-2 days per week of power use allowed. Similar situations are reportedly occurring in Jiangsu, Hubei, and Fujian provinces, all major manufacturing regions. As just one example, one of my US-based import customers has reported that a key supplier in Jiangsu is down to a single day per week of power availability. Limited-but-expanded power rationing is also occurring in Zhejiang, Shandong, Liaoning, and other important heavy industrial, chemical, and energy-product hubs.Figure 1 – Chinese Province Power Rationing Regime – Courtesy of The Lantau Group
The primary causes of power disruptions are the aforementioned reduced availability of hydroelectric power in much of southern China, as well as limited supplies of coal due to the ongoing China/Australia trade dispute. The latter cause is expected to be more sustained in impact, as the year-long embargo by China on Australian thermal coal has depleted China’s strategic reserves and caused commercial and residential prices to rapidly spike. China imports about 10% of its annual thermal coal needs; of this, Australia was close to 70% of the total prior to the mid-2020 embargo. It is expected that China will be forced to drop the embargo ahead of the fourth quarter, but this is not certain. Reopening its markets to Australian coal imports would be an important stabilizing step for China’s manufacturing base, but would nonetheless take weeks or even months to ramp back up to normal output.
If China does not capitulate on the importation of Australian coal and cannot close the gap with imports from Brazil, South Africa, and the US, the southern region will continue to see constrained power availability, reducing export volumes especially from Shenzhen’s ports, Hong Kong, and Xiamen, as well as Tianjin, Dalian, and Qingdao in the north. We would expect in this scenario to see these ports be utilized by ocean carriers for more transshipments out of Southeast Asia or central China, while export-focused capacity shifts to Ningbo and Shanghai, as well as alleviating significant congestion pressure at Kaohsiung and Busan. Freight rates are anticipated by some maritime industry players to soften somewhat, though a bullish case for barely-reduced rates could be made that a very large backlog of existing cargo and ongoing delays at US and European ports will keep volumes at a high level through Lunar New Year at least, with a strong likelihood of continuing through the ILWU negotiations.
October 8, 2021
Coal For Christmas
by Tyler DurdenThursday, Oct 07, 2021 – 02:40 PM
Authored by Fortis Analysis via Human Terrain (emphasis ours),
In mid-April 2021, I began receiving reports from sources in China and the United States that certain regions in China had begun to experience ongoing power disruptions at their warehouses and manufacturing facilities. Most notable of these was in south China’s Guangdong megaregion, where in June operations at the Taishan Nuclear Power Plant had become disrupted by a small number of faulty claddings for the fuel rods, ultimately forcing state-owned General Nuclear Power Group to shut down Unit 1 (there are two units) for maintenance and repair. Concurrently, available power imported to the Guangdong region from Yunnan province’s considerable hydroelectric capacity was reduced due to drier-than-expected weather throughout the spring.
Taken together, some estimates are that total power available to the region fell by as much as 15% by June. In response, officials began quietly rationing power to factories, cutting business operation days by 1 or 2 days depending on the facilities’ power requirements.
In recent weeks, however, officials have begun a much more aggressive rationing program (Figure 1), with factories in much of Guangdong now seeing only 1-2 days per week of power use allowed. Similar situations are reportedly occurring in Jiangsu, Hubei, and Fujian provinces, all major manufacturing regions. As just one example, one of my US-based import customers has reported that a key supplier in Jiangsu is down to a single day per week of power availability. Limited-but-expanded power rationing is also occurring in Zhejiang, Shandong, Liaoning, and other important heavy industrial, chemical, and energy-product hubs.Figure 1 – Chinese Province Power Rationing Regime – Courtesy of The Lantau Group
The primary causes of power disruptions are the aforementioned reduced availability of hydroelectric power in much of southern China, as well as limited supplies of coal due to the ongoing China/Australia trade dispute. The latter cause is expected to be more sustained in impact, as the year-long embargo by China on Australian thermal coal has depleted China’s strategic reserves and caused commercial and residential prices to rapidly spike. China imports about 10% of its annual thermal coal needs; of this, Australia was close to 70% of the total prior to the mid-2020 embargo. It is expected that China will be forced to drop the embargo ahead of the fourth quarter, but this is not certain. Reopening its markets to Australian coal imports would be an important stabilizing step for China’s manufacturing base, but would nonetheless take weeks or even months to ramp back up to normal output.
If China does not capitulate on the importation of Australian coal and cannot close the gap with imports from Brazil, South Africa, and the US, the southern region will continue to see constrained power availability, reducing export volumes especially from Shenzhen’s ports, Hong Kong, and Xiamen, as well as Tianjin, Dalian, and Qingdao in the north. We would expect in this scenario to see these ports be utilized by ocean carriers for more transshipments out of Southeast Asia or central China, while export-focused capacity shifts to Ningbo and Shanghai, as well as alleviating significant congestion pressure at Kaohsiung and Busan. Freight rates are anticipated by some maritime industry players to soften somewhat, though a bullish case for barely-reduced rates could be made that a very large backlog of existing cargo and ongoing delays at US and European ports will keep volumes at a high level through Lunar New Year at least, with a strong likelihood of continuing through the ILWU negotiations.
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