Nova Innovene site to close in Europe
FRIBOURG, SWITZERLAND - The Nova Innovene International SA joint venture will close its 400 million-pound-capacity solid polystyrene plant in Carrington, England, in October.
The closing will remove about 6 percent of total European solid PS capacity and will reduce Nova Innovene's fixed costs by about $14 million per year.
``We have significant overcapacity in our polystyrene business,'' Nova Innovene Managing Director Martin Pugh said in a news release. ``This, combined with significant feedstock volatility, has depressed margins, making our PS business unprofitable.
``In making this change, we intend to address our overcapacity and improve our cost structure.''
Late last year, the joint venture closed an expandable PS plant in Berre, France, and permanently shuttered an idle EPS plant in Carrington. Nova Innovene of Fribourg is a 50-50 venture between Pittsburgh-based Nova Chemicals Corp. and Ineos Group of Lyndhurst, England.
Nova also will record a $43 million after-tax charge in the third quarter related to the closing.
Xaloy Inc. expanding facility in Thailand
NEW CASTLE, PA. - Plastic machinery parts maker Xaloy Inc. of New Castle began a $3 million expansion of its Chonburi, Thailand, plant in July. The facility supplies bimetallic barrels to German and Japanese machinery manufacturers in the area.
Echoing many suppliers in the Asia-Pacific region, Xaloy Chief Executive Officer Walter Cox said the expansion is the result of growing demand from customers. With new capacity scheduled by mid-2007, the expansion will allow Xaloy to increase production of barrel capacity by 3,000 units per year.
In Asia, the customers include Japanese machinery makers Fanuc, Nissei, Sumitomo and Toshiba, as well as Chen Hsong and Haitian in China. An Xaloy spokesman said the firm also supplies the Asian subsidiaries of Engel and Krauss-Maffei.
Some sales also come from replacement barrels and screws for leading molders and extruders.
In 2006, Xaloy opened sales offices in Beijing and Shanghai, but has no plans to open a production facility in China. The firm also has added a sales and service office in Ahmedebad, India.
``Our expansion in Thailand will meet our customers' needs for a while,'' the spokesman said via e-mail.
The Chonburi plant was founded in 1998 and also produces high-performance screws.
Xaloy's global sales this year are expected to reach $120 million.
Mexico will continue PVC dumping tariffs
MEXICO CITY - Mexico has extended anti-dumping quotas on PVC exporters in the U.S. for another five years, retroactive to Aug. 15, 2005.
The Ministry of the Economy announced its decision after reviewing the quotas, which were introduced in June 1991. It confirmed the following tariffs on PVC imported by Mexico: Vista Chemical Co., 12.5 percent; Shintech Inc., 18.9 percent; Occidental Chemical Co. and all others, 34.6 percent.
The Mexican producers were represented by Polímeros de México SA de CV and Grupo Primex SA de CV, both affiliates of Mexichem SA de CV, and by Policyd SA de CV, an affiliate of Mexican group Cydsa SA. According to the ministry, the trio accounted for all national PVC production from 2000 through 2004.
Advocating removal of the quotas were importer Industrias Plasticas Internacionales SA de CV and Shintech, for the exporters.
The Mexican producers argued that, if the anti-dumping quotas were removed, the prices and volumes of PVC from the U.S. would damage national assets and Mexican companies' share of the local market.
The ministry said it had noted a tendency to lower prices of PVC from the U.S. by as much as 50 percent in the period analyzed, January through December 2004.
According to the ministry, U.S. installed PVC capacity and export potential are larger than the Mexican industry and market, and it sees no sign that will change.
The ministry said in 2005 that 28 percent of Mexico's PVC imports came from the U.S., 17 percent from Germany, 16 percent from Belgium, 15 percent from France and 10, 7 and 5 percent from South Korea, Venezuela and China, respectively.
Manifold producer expanding into India
AUBURN HILLS, MICH. - Hot-runner manifold maker Plastic Engineering & Technical Services Inc. is expanding into India.
The Auburn Hills-based company began construction of a 25,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Chennai, India, in June, and expects to launch production during the fall.
The move comes in response to a continuing expansion into India by PETS customers, including automaker General Motors Corp., auto supplier Visteon Corp. and other firms.
PETS already makes manifolds and other hot-runner components in the U.S., China, England and Italy.
