A source close to the producer told SSESMENTS.COM the impact on supply caused by the fire at LG Chem’s petrochemical complex in the southwestern city of Seosan on May 19. According to the company, LG Chem is investigating the exact cause but ignition of powder at the plant may be the reason behind the fire.
As South Korea is a top supplier to China for PP and in the top five suppliers for HDPE and LDPE, unexpected events such as explosions and fire could raise a concern about the availability of materials in the days to come. According to China’s National Bureau of Statistics, China imported more than a million tons of PP cargoes from South Korea in 2019. More than half of the figure was for PP Homopolymers. For HDPE Film, South Korea is the fourth top supplier with 757,786 tons of cargoes entered China in the same year. Meanwhile, the country is the fifth top supplier for LDPE to China. Further details are provided in the table below.
On May 20, SSESMENTS.COM was informed that the fire has not impacted the producer’s supply for PE and PVC. Only supply for metallocene PP is affected as a catalyst is needed in the production of the grades. Grades affected are provided in the table below. The producer ensures that PP Homopolymer supply is not disrupted.
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