The global recycled plastics market will continue to grapple with unfavorable economics in 2020.
In the long term, demand for recycled plastics is expected to grow significantly, along with recycling rates for core materials PET, PE and PP.
Posts for the ‘Petrochemicals’ category
 
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December 24, 2019 06:15 UTC 
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Sabic executive vice president of petrochemicals, Abdulrahman Al-Fageeh, talked with Claudia Carpenter about the outlook for the industry and Saudi Aramco’s pending takeover of 70% of the company for $69.1 billion. All eyes are on Aramco’s acquisition of Sabic, now that the state-owned oil giant has successfully issued new shares in the world’s biggest initial public offering in December. Aramco has said it expects the Sabic acquisition to close in the first half 2020, turning it into a company with the world’s largest net production capacity of ethylene and among the top four companies in net production capacity of polyethylene, monoethylene glycol and polypropylene. |
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October 16, 2019 09:29 UTC
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Virgin plastic production is thriving in the US, fueled by the North American shale boom. But the reversal of fortune for the US chemical industry has highlighted a bigger challenge amid widespread concern about plastic waste and sustainability. The growth of shale activity across the US unearthed ethane feedstock so cheap that a region that had been facing naphtha-fed plant shutdowns and petrochemical imports saw the cost advantage of home-fracked gas shaping its future as a global petrochemical supplier. |
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October 9, 2019 15:24 UTC
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Recognition of plastic waste as a global problem has spurred legislation and industry initiatives in the last two years, and driven growth in demand for recycled plastics. When it comes to developing recycling as a sustainable business, Europe leads the way, and in particular the market for polyethylene terephthalate (PET), best known as the material of choice for plastic drinks bottles. But the evolution of PET and recycled PET (R-PET) markets in 2019 highlighted underlying concerns around profitability and cost, as price trends shifted with changing demand patterns. |
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August 23, 2019 10:36 UTC
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Colombia’s consumption of single-use plastic bags at major stores more than halved in the past 18 months and the government is mulling greater deterrents to their use, as the outlook for applications of plastics and petrochemicals grows gloomier in the South American country. A program promoted by Colombia’s Ministry of Environmental Affairs’ to reduce the use of plastic bags in large stores and supermarkets resulted in a 54% decrease in the consumption of single-use plastic bags over the past 18 months, the ministry said in mid-August. The decrease in consumption of fossil fuel-based single-use plastic bags is calculated based on self-reporting required of large stores and supermarkets under current regulations. |
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March 19, 2019 09:49 UTC
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Trade in polyethylene resin and finished products slowed in the fourth quarter of 2018, becoming a casualty of the US-China trade war. Last year, the Trump Administration launched a full-scale trade war with China, imposing three rounds of tariffs worth a cumulative $250 billion on Chinese products. › Continue Reading |
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February 27, 2019 12:37 UTC
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US-China trade tensions were in the spotlight last year across commodity markets, and the petrochemicals sector was by no means untouched. Antidumping duties introduced by China on the imports of some origins of styrene – used to make packaging and other plastic and synthetic rubber products – altered trade flows significantly. One result has been an increase in trading activity within Europe. › Continue Reading |
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February 21, 2019 09:28 UTC
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This is the concluding article in a three-part series exploring oil, plastics demand and sustainability. European governments and corporates are setting ambitious goals on plastics recycling, but there are practical and economic hurdles to get over if the policies are to be a success. Not only do some countries’ domestic markets lag behind, but there is a general reliance on material from countries such as Germany and the Netherlands where more inroads have been made to cope with high levels of demand. |
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February 20, 2019 08:25 UTC
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This is the second installment in a three-part series exploring oil, plastics demand and sustainability. Plastics and chemicals will account for the largest share of global crude demand growth by 2030, and a third wave of petrochemicals expansion underway in the Middle East is looking to cash in on the trend, as investment into downstream petroleum industries will become a critical demand driver for oil markets in the future. Industrialized economies use up to 20 times more plastic and up to 10 times more fertilizer than developing nations on a per person basis, underscoring the huge potential for global growth. The International Energy Agency expects petrochemicals to account for almost half of global oil demand growth by 2050, equivalent to almost 7 million b/d. |
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February 19, 2019 06:30 UTC
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This is the first installment in a three-part series exploring oil, plastics demand and sustainability. Barely a week goes by without another headline decrying the use of plastics and plastic packaging in Europe. Plastics are clogging up our oceans, overflowing our landfill sites and even finding their way into our food. But as the world wakes up to the environmental damage caused by plastic waste and pollution, it may come as a surprise to learn that the industry is looking to dramatically ramp up production, not slow it down. |