Ethane prices fell in the US due to a prospect of weaker exports to northwest Europe amid the coronavirus pandemic. Scheduled maintenance at Gulf Coast steam crackers and uncertain outlooks for derivative exports also weigh on ethane pricing.
Market sources informed SSESSMENTS.COM that prices of non-TET purity ethane were assessed at a range of 9-10.75 cents/gallon in Mont Belvieu on Friday, 15% lower than a day earlier. Meanwhile, ethylene prices have dropped to 30%-35% lower than monthly term prices in northwest Europe. Ethylene spot prices touched a new low on Friday at 9.5 cents/pound for March and 9.625 cents/pound for April.
Ineos usually shipped ethane for its crackers in Grangemouth, Scotland, and Rafnes, Norway. However, tanker tracking data showed that no Ineos-chartered carriers are due to arrive in Enterprise's Morgan's Point berths on the Houston Ship Channel or Energy Transfer-Sunoco export facility in Marcus Hook until mid-April.
Ineos is heard to have postponed maintenance in Grangemouth scheduled for next month due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It will also perform a turnaround at its 930,000 tons/year Chocolate Bayou cracker in April for about 45 days. However, market sources informed SSESSMENTS.COM that the shutdown might be extended to three months. This turnaround follows the downtime at LyondellBasell's plant in Channelview, Formosa's unit in Point Comfort and Dow's TX-9 in Freeport.
