A planned three-week turnaround at Methanol Holdings Trinidad Limited's (MHTL) 1.9 million mt/year M5000 facility in Trinidad began last week and is proceeding according to schedule, a source at Southern Chemical Corporation said Thursday.
SCC is the US distributor for the methanol produced by the Trinidad-based methanol manufacturer. SCC has told customers that it will be able to fulfill its obligations during the turnaround, the source said.
The turnaround is happening as spot prices for methanol have risen this month. Methanol prices are up 5 cents/gal since the beginning of the month, and were assessed by Platts Thursday at $1.19/gal, FOB US Gulf Coast.
European and Asian methanol prices have also been rising, with the move attributed to looming EU sanctions on Iran, which are set to take effect July 1. The sanctions are expected to have an impact on methanol supply to Europe and Asia, according to market sources.
