Ascent of a basic material – Ceresana announces new study on ethylene

Pigment & Resin Technology

ISSN: 0369-9420

Article publication date: 24 May 2011

38

Citation

(2011), "Ascent of a basic material – Ceresana announces new study on ethylene", Pigment & Resin Technology, Vol. 40 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/prt.2011.12940cae.001

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2011, Emerald Group Publishing Limited


Ascent of a basic material – Ceresana announces new study on ethylene

Article Type: Publications From: Pigment & Resin Technology, Volume 40, Issue 3

Ethylene is needed for plastic bottles, textile fibers and water pipes. The most produced petrochemical is mainly used for the production of plastic. A new study of the market research institute Ceresana Research shows that ethylene producers are recovering from the sharp drop in the year 2009. “By 2017, worldwide ethylene revenue will reach again the current 2008 peak volume, which is more than 160 billion US$”, explains Oliver Kutsch, President of Ceresana Research. “Ethylene prices already recovered during 2010, after they had declined at an average rate of 35 percent in 2009”.

China, the pioneer

The Asia-Pacific region will continue to dominate the market in future and generate more than a third of worldwide demand. The pioneer will be China that will rise to become the greatest ethylene consumer worldwide, and will therefore drive out the USA to the second place, followed by Saudi Arabia. However, countries of the Middle East exhibit the largest increases in ethylene production and demand. Volumes in the Middle East have doubled over the past eight years, and Ceresana Research expects to see a further doubling by 2015.

Ethylene becomes polyethylene

More than a third of the sold ethylene is processed into polyethylene, which is for example used in construction materials made of HDPE, or LDPE packaging. The production of ethylene oxide accounts for roughly 11 percent of global ethylene demand. Ethylene oxide is mainly used to produce ethylene glycol, which is a pre-product of polyester. The production of textile fibers is, above all, growing significantly in Asia. Additionally, producers of ethylene oxide are profiting from the substitution of glass by PET bottles.

A comprehensive analysis

On 812 pages, the “Market Study Ethylene” explores the ethylene market, and includes forecasts until 2017 in regard to demand, production, import, export, revenues and prices. The study offers a comprehensive insight into the development of the seven world regions. In total of 55 countries are analyzed: demand divided by applications, production, capacities and trade as well as their influencing factors. Applications include HDPE, LLDPE, LDPE, ethylene oxide, EDC, ethylbenzene and acetaldehyde, ethanol, linear alcohols, vinyl acetate, and alpha-olefins. The study provides you with a useful list of 117 profiles of manufacturers and is available immediately in English or German, exclusively from Ceresana Research, for further information, please visit the web site: www.ceresana.com/en/market-studies/chemicals/ethylene/

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