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U.S. specialty chemical markets accelerated in Feb., ACC says

The American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) reported that U.S. specialty chemicals market volumes rose a strong 0.6 percent in February. This follows an upwardly revised 0.4 percent gain in January. Volumes have generally been moving up since May.…

Chemical Activity Barometer sees strongest Y/Y gain in years, ACC says

The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), posted its strongest year-over-year gain in nearly seven years. The 5.5 percent increase over this time last year reflects elevated consumer…

Current economic trends: CEPCI January (prelim.) and December (final)

The preliminary value for the January CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; the most recent available) represents a gain from the last reading of 2016. With that, the annual CEPCI number for 2016 was calculated to be 541.7, using the average…

GE and Caithness annouce deal to build combined-cycle power plants

GE Power (Schenectady, N.Y.; www.ge.com) and Caithness Energy (New York, N.Y.; www.caithnessenergy.com) today announced an exclusive agreement with the intent to pursue development of multiple new HA combined-cycle power plants in the United States. The equipment package that GE will…

Global chemical production starts strong in 2017, ACC says

The American Chemistry Council’s (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) Global Chemical Production Regional Index (Global CPRI) shows that headline global production started the year on a strong note, rising 0.6 percent in January after a similar gain in December, as measured…

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Business News — March 2017

Plant Watch AkzoNobel announces startup of bio-steam facility at Delfzijl plant February 13, 2017 — AkzoNobel N.V. (Amsterdam, the Netherlands; www.akzonobel.com) and utility company Eneco announced the startup of a bio-steam facility at AkzoNobel’s Delfzijl site in the Netherlands. Eneco…

KBR awarded revamp contract for ethylene plant in Korea

KBR, Inc. (Houston; www.kbr.com) announced today it has been awarded a technology licensing and basic engineering design (LBED) revamp contract by LG Chem for its ethylene plant at Daesan, South Korea.Under the terms of the contract, KBR will provide license…

Clariant opens global R&D center in Brazil

Clariant (Muttenz, Switzerland; www.clariant.com), a world leader in specialty chemicals, today opens its first global R&D center for haircare ingredients. Located in São Paulo, Brazil, the new global Competence Center Haircare (gCCH) puts Clariant’s experts at the heart of the…

Chemical activity barometer continues to climb, ACC says

The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), posted a strong gain in February of 0.4 percent, following a similar 0.4 percent gain in January. This follows a steady…

U.S. specialty chemicals start Q1 2017 on good note, ACC says

The American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) reported that U.S. specialty chemicals market volumes rose 0.2 percent in January. This follows a downwardly revised 0.3 percent gain in December. Volumes have generally been moving up since May. All changes…