Petchems producers can see better times ahead
US petchem producers look to brighter tomorrow
After being battered by unprecedented weather events and demand loss over the past year, the industry is hoping for much-needed market stability
The US petrochemicals sector has managed to weather the storm—both figuratively and literally—with operators outlasting a global health pandemic, an overactive hurricane season and more recently an Arctic blast that ripped through the heartland of Texas’ energy sector. Margins across the downstream sector are also rapidly recovering as economic lockdowns in the developed world wind down. And robust global capacity for feedstocks provision is helping offset lost capacity from the US Gulf Coast. Indicative cracker margins in both the US and Europe have doubled between Q2 last year and the first half of 2021. 70pc – Ethylene price jump in March But US margins may have already peaked, w
Also in this section
16 April 2026
Demand for oil is falling because supply cannot meet it, not because it is no longer required
16 April 2026
The continent has an immediate opportunity to make the most of its energy resources by capturing gas that is currently slipping away
15 April 2026
The continent is seeing political pushback to climate plans, corporate reassessment of transition goals and rising supply risk in a fractured global order
15 April 2026
The Middle East energy crisis may turn out to be pivotal to the industry’s long-term expansion, but significant challenges still stand in its way
