Japan’s chemical groups Asahi Kasei, Mitsui Chemicals and Mitsubishi Chemical are consolidating their ethylene production in western Japan: the Amec site in Mizushima will be closed by 2030, with capacities relocated to Osaka. At the same time, a bioethanol-based Revolefin plant is expected to advance the decarbonisation of basic chemicals.

In an exclusive email interview with Ahlam Rais, Marco Mensink, Director General of Cefic (European Chemical Industry Council), discusses Europe’s chemical market challenges, explains the underlying causes of recent plant closures, and outlines Cefic’s key recommendations for revitalizing the sector.

The Ta’ziz Methanol Company, a joint venture between Ta’ziz and Proman, has secured financing of 2 billion dollars for developing UAE’s first world scale methanol plant in Al Ruwais Industrial City, Abu Dhabi.

The EU-India free trade agreement is expected to double EU goods exports to India by 2032. With a specific focus on the chemicals and pharmaceuticals industries, the trade deal highlights that India will eliminate current tariffs of up to 22 % on EU chemicals and 11 % on EU pharmaceuticals while the EU will also cut tariffs to zero on Indian chemical exports as well as offer Indian pharmaceutical and medical devices companies’ preferential access to the EU market. In this scenario, what do industry leaders in the chemical and pharma space have to say about the EU-India free trade deal? Read on to find out…

Lummus and Sumitomo Chemical have announced the commercial availability of their highly-efficient Polymethyl Methacrylate Chemical Recycling technology. The technology aims to reduce waste, lower emissions and unlock new value from recycled materials.

The European Chemical Closures & Investments Radar 2022-2025 report, commissioned by Cefic and prepared by Roland Berger shows that chemical plant closures in Europe, has surged sixfold since 2022, reaching a cumulative 37 mt of capacity – or around 9 % of European production capacity – and resulting in the loss of 20,000 direct jobs in the chemical industry.

Mitsui Chemicals has entered into a MOU with Dangote Industries to establish a comprehensive partnership. With this move, both the firms will jointly explore concrete possibilities to contribute to strengthening the living foundations and developing regional industries in African countries.

BASF has recently inaugurated its new Verbund site in Zhanjiang, China. The 8.7 billion project sets a new benchmark for sustainable chemical production in China and across the globe.

The ‘Best CO₂ Utilization 2026’ innovation award was awarded to three pioneering CCU and Power-to-X technologies at the CO₂-based Fuels and Chemicals Conference 2026 which was held in Cologne, Germany.

Under an agreement signed between Ineos Inovyn and Esseco Industrial, Ineos Inovyn will sell its shares in Inovyn Produzione Italia, which operates the Rosignano and Tavazzano sites in Italy. Both the sites produce essential chemicals for critical sectors.