TiO2 feedstocks: : mind the gap

• Autores: Kasia Patel
• Localización: Industrial Minerals, ISSN 0019-8544, Nº. 565, 2014 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Octubre)
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • DuPont, another major player in the pigment industry, noted that though sales of TiO[subscript]2 had increased slightly in the second quarter of 2014, TiO[subscript]2 prices remained about 3% lower y-o-y. It added that, currently, industry demand is staying relatively stable but that it expects moderately lower ore costs for TiO[subscript]2.

    While new TiO[subscript]2 feedstock projects are in development, existing feedstock producers have slowed down capacity expansions and even taken existing capacity offline while lacklustre demand for TiO[subscript]2 continues. In 2013, Rio Tinto Minerals announced that it would cancel its feedstock expansion plans while deciding to put its South zircon and rutile processing operations on care and maintenance. The company's Quebec chloride slag production facility was taken offline and the pre-feasibility study was also cancelled in response to weak demand and to reduce operating costs.

    An uptick in TiO[subscript]2 demand in 2014, owing particularly to a revival in paint demand in the Northern Hemisphere, has led to increases in production by leading pigment producers, Tronox, Huntsman and Kronos, with slight increases in DuPont's TiO[subscript]2 volumes. Some producers have also noted signs of demand recovery in minor markets.