European spot polyethylene terephthalate prices edged higher Wednesday amid a flurry of planned March shutdowns at Equipolymer, Plastivert and Lotte.
Spot PET prices on the continent were assessed Wednesday at Eur1,100/mt (about $1,355/mt) FD NWE, up Eur15/mt from the previous week.
"With three producers down for planned maintenance and one continental [plant] apparently struggling with production issues, the market is now left short. Hence this week Eur1,100/mt was accepted by buyers to secure volumes end-February and early March," a PET buyer said.
A planned maintenance is expected at Lotte's plant in northeast England during the next couple of weeks, although the end date is yet to be known and not all capacity will be interrupted a Lotte spokesman said. A company source had previously said it would not conduct any planned maintenance until 2020, S&P Global Platts reported in December.
Dubai-headquartered PET resins maker Equipolymers will conduct a four-week planned maintenance starting March 1 at its PET 1 unit plant in Schkopau, Germany, an Equipolymer spokesman confirmed. The plant has a 160,000 mt/year capacity.
Market sources also reported a planned shutdown at Switzerland's PET maker Plastivert which should start in March. The company was not available to comment.
"[There's a] possibility not all buyers will be able to cover demand from established sources in March," the buyer source added, leaving the market situation in Europe very tight.
