Mitsui announces major restructuring, reports wider loss

摘要

Mitsui Chemicals today announced a major restructuring of its operations as a result of the volatility in the polyurethane and phenol markets. Mitsui's board of directors has approved a restruc- turing plan, which will result in the closure of several production facilities in Japan. Mitsui says that it will close all production plants at the company's manufacturing complex at Kashima, Japan, as well as a 60,000-m.t./year methylene di- para -phenylene iso- cyanate (MDI) plant at the company’s site at Omuta in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, by 31 December 2016. Mitsui's Kashima site produces 117,000 m.t./year of toluene diisocyanate (TDI); 32,000 m.t./year of maleic anhydride; 15,000 m.t./year of fumaric acid; 500 m.t./year of xylylene diisocyanate (XDI); and 900 m.t./year of hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI). The proftability of the TDI and MDI businesses decreased due to oversupply in the market caused by additional capacity coming online in Asia, especially China, Mitsui says. Mitsui also plans to close its 90,000-m.t./year bisphenol A (BPA) plant at Ichihara in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, by 31 March 2014. The proftability of the BPA business struggled due to oversupply in the market, and a fall in demand for the product in Japan, Mitsui says.