Japan's Keiyo Ethylene is unlikely to operate its naphtha-fed steam cracker at Chiba at 100% of capacity after restarting it on July 3, a company source said Tuesday.
The steam cracker was shut on May 13 for maintenance. The source said some mechanical problems were found during the turnaround, which is why it was unlikely to run at 100% after the restart.
The steam cracker is able to produce 700,000 mt/year of ethylene and 400,000 mt/year of propylene.
The source was unable to say what the actual operating rate of the steam cracker would be but said that it could be as low as 70%.
Keiyo Ethylene is 55% owned by Maruzen Petrochemical and 45% by Sumitomo Chemical.
Maruzen Petrochemical has a steam cracker in Chiba that can produce 550,000 mt/year of ethylene and 230,000 mt/year of propylene.
The operating rate of that steam cracker was likely to be reduced after July as it was also experiencing a similar issue, the source said.
