SINGAPORE (ICIS)--China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) is planning to start up its 100,000 tonnes/year butyl acrylate (butyl-A) plant at Huizhou in Guangzhou province in mid-to-late August, a company source said on Wednesday.

The company was initially [1]planning to start up the unit by the end of June this year, but this was changed to August because of delays in achieving environmental clearance from the government and weak demand, according to the source.

The producer also expects to start up a 140,000 tonnes/year acrylic acid (AA) plant and a 160,000 tonnes/year acrylate esters plant at the same site, the source said. However, the exact start-up dates of these plants could not be confirmed.

The supply of butyl-A, AA and acrylate esters in Guangzhou province will increase after the start-up, but this is expected to have a limited impact on the market as downstream demand remains weak, a market player said.

References

1. http://www.icis.com/Articles/2012/05/28/9564342/Chinas-CNOOC-to-start-trial-runs-at-butyl-A-unit-at.html

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(Originally published July 18, 2012, in Chemical News & Intelligence.)