Market players: Vietnam’s Hyosung shut PDH plant on unspecified problem

According to market sources, Hyosung Vina Chemical has shut its propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit in Southern Vietnam on 24 December 2021 due to an unspecified technical issue.

The plant has been encountering technical difficulties on-and-off since started up in August 2021. At the moment, it is unclear on how long the company might need to restart the 600,000 tons/year unit.

Meanwhile, Hyosung’s No. 2 PP plant with a nameplate capacity of 300,000 tons/year remains offline at the time of this report. Given the unstable production at the upstream cracker, market players are now not only questioning the company’s ability to restart the No. 2 PP plant, but also its aptitude in maintaining the operating rate at the No. 1 PP line.

Buyers within Vietnam and Indonesia are monitoring the development very closely to gauge the near-term market direction.