Chinese film venture moves into PVC resin
HOUSTON — Suzhou Huasu Plastics Co. Ltd., a multinational joint venture, has acquired funding to build a PVC resin plant in Taicang, China, with an annual capacity of 220 million pounds. The project is expected to be completed in the first half of 1999.
The company has operated a PVC film calendering facility at the site, which is about 25 miles north of Shanghai, since 1995. That plant produces about 53 million pounds of PVC film each year for use in inflatable toys, office supplies, shower curtains and other products.
Suzhou Huasu is a 5-year-old joint venture among Houston's Westlake International Investments Corp.; Norwegian industrial firm Norsk Hydro ASA; Jiangsu Chemical Pesticide Group Co. and Taicang Petrochemical Co., both of China; and International Finance Corp., a division of World Bank.
Westlake International Investments Corp. is a subsidiary of Westlake Chemical Corp., a Houston chemical and resin manufacturer.
Shell debottlenecks Kraton production
HOUSTON — A planned debottlenecking at Shell Chemical Co.'s Belpre, Ohio, plant will allow the firm to boost production of its Kraton G-brand polymers by 10 million pounds a year.
Shell officials also dangled the announcement of a new ``world-scale'' Kraton facility, but offered few details.
``We are prepared to take the steps necessary to meet a growing global demand,'' elastomers strategy manager David Preston said in a news release.
Officials at the Houston-based chemical company said the new capacity will be on-line in Belpre by 1998.
Kraton G polymers are used in adhesives, sealants, coatings, compounds and other applications.
Shell would not release the costs of the debottlenecking; however, company officials said the process would be less expensive than building a new, free-standing facility.
A 1996 debottlenecking in Belpre also added 10 million pounds of annual capacity.
Shell recently introduced new compound grades of Kraton G that are designed to improve the tactile properties of polycarbonate, ABS and nylon.
Kraton G polymers also are produced at a Shell affiliate's plant in Berre, France.