level attained in 1996/97, exertingdownward pressure on world talcprices in the next few years.”

Reg Adams

“The Economics of Talc & Pyrophyllite” (191 pages,196 tables and 27 charts). Available for £1100 or$2200 or €1925 from: Roskill Information Services,27a Leopold Road, Wimbledon, London SW19 7BB,England. Tel: +44 20 8944 0066. Fax: +44 20 89479568. E-mail: info@roskill.co.uk

PLANTSWorld: Ampacet – masterbatch

Ampacet has stepped up its globalcapacity for plastics masterbatch withthe acquisition of three companies –Polimaster (of Italy), PolyColour (ofthe UK) and Corland (of Brazil).Polimaster and PolyColour supplyspeciality colour concentrates forblow-moulding and injection-moulding; Corland makes commoditygrade white concentrates.

Ampacet is also expanding thecapacity of its existing masterbatchfacilities in Canada, Thailand andBrazil. Operations at Delta, BC (inCanada) will be transferred to a new60,000 sq ft site in the same town.The new site will be able toaccommodate two new extrusionlines. Ampacet Thailand is expandingits Rayong factory by 30,000 sq ft inorder to increase its capacity formaking colour concentrates for film,blow-moulding and injection-mouldingapplications. The expansion willcreate 30-50 new jobs here. At its SaoPaulo (Brazil) plant, Ampacet willinstall new production and laboratoryequipment for making custom colourconcentrates. Also in Latin America,the company plans to open a newsales office in Mexico City.

To take advantage of boomingdemand in China, Ampacet isevaluating options for building a newmasterbatch plant, probably in theShanghai region.

Global sales revenue was $500 Mlast year and the company isforecasting an increase of about 3%this year.

Plastics News, 30 Jun 2003, 15 (18), 5 (Website:http://www.plasticsnews.com)

Europe: Cabot – carbon black

Following the closure of its Zierbena

plant in Spain (See also ‘Focus onPigments’, Jul 2003, 5-6), Cabot willhave five carbon black plants inEurope, namely: Valea Mezurici(Czech Republic); Port Jerome andBerre l’Etang (France); Ravenna(Italy); and Stanslow (UnitedKingdom). These five plants willaccount for about one-quarter ofCabot’s global carbon black capacityof 1.98 M tonnes/y.

European Rubber Journal, Jun 2003, 185 (6), 2

Australia: Imdex – MIO

Imdex Ltd has decided to retain itsmicaceous iron oxide (MIO) businessafter all. Last year, the company haddeclared that this was a non-corebusiness and put it up for auction.Evidently, no serious candidatescame forward to purchase thebusiness. Now Imdex is spendingA$1.5 M on an upgrading programme,covering its mineral processing,milling and warehousing facilities atJandakot (Western Australia). Thecompany’s deposit at Mount Gould isconsidered to be the largest knowndeposit of micaceous iron oxide in theworld, with reserves of 236,000tonnes. The Jandakot processingplant currently produces about 6000tonnes/y of marketable material.

Industrial Minerals, May 2003, (428), 9

China & Europe: Americhem – plasticsmasterbatch

Americhem Inc is evaluating eightpossible sites in the first phase of itsproject to build a new plasticsmasterbatch plant in China. Budgetedinvestment requirements for thisproject are of the order of $3-5 M.

Americhem is also consideringbuilding a second plant in Europe tosupplement its existing plant atManchester.

The company reported salesrevenue at $150 M for 2002, of whichinternational sales accounted for lessthan 15%. Americhem aims to lift thisratio to 20-30% by 2005.

Plastics News, 30 Jun 2003, 15 (18), 26 (Website:http://www.plasticsnews.com)

China: Jiehong – phthalo blue

Plans have been drawn up toestablish the largest chemical industry

complex in northern China. This willbe known as the Lingang ChemicalIndustry Zone in Hebei province,which will cover an area of about10,000 hectares. Yuan 10 bn will beinvested in the construction of newproduction facilities here and a furtherYuan 2 bn will be spent oninfrastructure. Cangzhou Chemicalsand the Shenhua group havepromised to invest Yuan 500 M inestablishing a new wharf for handlingup to 900,000 tones/y of liquidchemicals.

Jiehong Co already operates aphthalocyanine blue plant in this area.It plans to spend Yuan 60 M on aproject for renovating and upgradingits facilities.

China Chemical Reporter, 16 Jun 2003, 14 (17), 9

China: JSR & Elastomix – carbon blackmasterbatch

Japan Synthetic Rubber (JSR) and itsaffiliate Elastomix plan to doublecapacity at the carbon blackmasterbatch plant in the Tianjin area.It is not clear if this is the same plantas the facility reportedly located atFuzhou, which was established in2001/02. (See ‘Focus on Pigments’,Mar 2001, 4).

European Rubber Journal, Jun 2003, 185 (6), 16

China: Nippon Kayaku – dyes

Nippon Kayaku (of Japan) intends todouble its annual sales of dyestuffs inChina by 2005 to Yen 2 bn. Last year,its subsidiary – Wuxi AdvancedChemicals – stepped up its capacitiesfor water-soluble dyes to 1000tonnes/y and for disperse dyes to2000 tonnes/y. Marketing is handledby Tomen Kayaku Trading (Shanghai)Co, a joint venture with Tomen Corp.

Japan Chemical Week, 10 Jul 2003, 44 (2228), 12

China: PanGang, Jinzhou Ferroalloys &Chongqing YuGang – TiO2

Panzhihua Iron & Steel Co (akaPanGang) is keen to consolidate itsposition as the leading TiO2 pigmentproducer in China. For more than 10years, the company has beenoperating a 12,000 tonnes/y sulfate-route TiO2 plant at Panzhihua(Sichuan province). In 2001, it was

2 AUGUST 2003

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