Sustainable Plastics - March/April 2022 - 33

polymer prices
Producers raise planned
hikes as costs escalate
I
n March, polymer markets
were being deeply
affected by the uncertainty
and sharp rise in
energy costs caused by the
war in Ukraine. At the beginning
of the month, polymer
producers called for price increases
either in line with the
rise in monomer costs or just
ahead of the cost increase.
By the second week of the
month, however, polymer producers
returned to the market
with even higher price targets
due to escalating crude
oil and energy costs. In polyolefins,
producers submitted
calls for hikes of up to €250/
tonne for LDPE, €300/tonne
for LLDPE, and €330/tonne
for HDPE and PP. Styrenics
producers raised their March
price target from €125/tonne
to €350/tonne to factor in
higher energy costs.
Hence, further large price increases
are on the cards during
the remainder of the month, at
least for polyolefins and styrenics.
In February, polymer producers
announced ambitious price
hikes aimed not just at recovering
cost increases but also improving
profit margins. They were in
for quite a surprise. Demand was
simply not strong enough to support
a significant price increase
while material availability was
more than sufficient.
L/LDPE prices actually fell
by €40/tonne, HDPE prices either
rolled over or were slightly
above a rollover, while polypropylene
prices presented a mixed
picture. PET prices continued to
climb and PVC also maintained
a firm upward price trajectory.
Polystyrene prices fell slightly
more than the reduction in styrene
monomer costs.
Supply improves
Material availability for polyolefins,
polystyrene and PET
has improved over the last two
months as several production
plants have resumed operaInnovyn's
site
in Norway
Prices Monitor Mar 2021 - Mar2022
PET PVC LLDPE HDPELDPEPPPS
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
tions after outages and imports
have started to arrive in larger
quantities. PVC supply, however,
is likely to remains tight for
a while yet.
Most producers were able to
meet contractual obligations for
standard material without delay,
but others experienced a shortage
of certain specialty grades.
In the second week of March,
two major producer stopped all
new March offers on European
PE citing rising costs.
Some of the latest plant outages
are summarised below.
* Vynova announced a partial
turnaround for maintenance at
its Belgium VCM plant from 1st
March to 1st April
* Ineos shut down its PP
plant in Belgium and its HDPE
plant in France on 15th March
for planned maintenance
* Sabic's LLDPE/HDPE swing
plant in Gelsenkirchen, Germany
reportedly would be unable
to produce its Supeer LLDPE
(C6) metallocene grades in
March and April
* Inovyn shut down its VCM
plant in Norway for one month
on 1st March for planned
maintenance
* Vinnolit shut down its PVC
plant in Germany 24th February
for planned maintenance.
Demand mixed
Demand has picked up over
the last two months after a slow
start to the year, but the picture
is mixed. Some converters are
sitting on ample stocks or don't
have the funds to buy additional
material. Others are ordering
more material in view of an expectation
of sharply rising prices.
April Outlook
For the rest of March and into
April, the polymer price outlook
is extremely uncertain.
On the one hand, while crude
oil prices have risen significantly
following the invasion
of Ukraine by Russia, oil prices
dropped significantly on 10th
March. It remains to be seen
how crude oil prices will move
during the rest of the month. It
appears most likely, however,
that April petrochemical feedstock
cost settlements will
increase once again. Polymer
producers will target full recovery
of material and energy
cost increases, but will face
strong buyer resistance.
PET
PVC
LLDPE
HDPE
LDPE
PP
PS
March/April 2022
33
€/kg
Sustainable Plastics - March/April 2022

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