21 Sep - Polypropylene: Only fire drill at TotalEnergies in Gonfreville / Polymerizations still out of service
Source: Market
What initially looked like an actual fire in one of the petrochemical plants of TotalEnergies in Gonfreville, which were plagued by production interruptions, was not one, as it turned out in the meantime. The "fire" in the polypropylene production warehouse on the afternoon of September 15, 2022 turned out to be a fire drill, as a distributor confirmed in an interview with AI.
All three polymerizations of the petrochemical company near Le Havre in northern France have been out of operation for weeks due to technical problems. According to the AI database Polyglobe (www.polyglobe.net), Total operates in Gonfreville in addition to the PP Copo line (230,000 tons a.d. – KIWeb from 08.02.2022), which has been shut down since February, as well as two swing plants for polyethylene and EVA, which have also been under force majeure for some time.
In view of the current oversupply of PP on the European market as well as falling prices, AI panelists reported that Total does not seem to be in a particular hurry when it comes to repairs. The company itself has not yet responded to a corresponding demand for AI.