Issue 8/2021 - Global Chemicals Quick Facts

BASF has significantly raised its emission reduction targets

On April 9, German chemical giant BASF said it would invest up to 4 billion euros ($4.
8 billion) to meet its latest goal
of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2030 compared to 2018.
The target is more aggressive
than its previous emissions reduction targets.
BASF said the latest target is also a milestone
on its path to carbon neutrality and net zero emissions by 2050.
Under the new target, BASF will cut its CO2 emissions by half by
2030.
According to the investment plan, BASF will invest about 1 billion euros to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, and will invest a further 2 billion ~ 3 billion euros in emission reduction
by 2030.

Large-scale infrastructure plans in the United States will stimulate chemical demand growth

Recently, the U.
S.
government unveiled a 10-year, $2 trillion infrastructure plan that will significantly increase spending on building and upgrading the country's transportation, housing, automobiles and communications systems, which will further boost demand for
chemicals and polymers.
The infrastructure bill, known as the American Jobs Plan, includes $621 billion to build and upgrade the country's transportation; More than $300 billion for drinking water systems, power grids and broadband access; More than $300 billion for affordable housing, schools, hospitals and office buildings
.
This "hard infrastructure" totals more than $1.
2 trillion, with the rest going to research and development and vocational training
.
The American Chemistry Council (ACC) said that if the plan becomes a reality, it will be the largest infrastructure investment in the United States since World War II and will require a lot of chemicals
.

The 3D printing market will reach $51 billion by 2030

3D printing is increasingly used beyond prototypes, molds, tooling and other single-use parts, and has the potential to dramatically disrupt traditional manufacturing
.
According to the latest data from Lux Research, the total global 3D printing market size will reach $51 billion
in 2030, driven by the strong growth of production parts.
Lux's latest report points out that in the next 10 years, the global 3D printing parts market will grow at an average annual rate of 15%, from $12 billion in 2020 to $51 billion
in 2030.
Anthony Schiavo, research director at Lux Research, said: "The largest share of this growth will be end-use components, which currently account for only 23% of the market but will reach 38%
in 2030.
The medical and dental industry will account for the largest share of end-use components, reaching $4.
5 billion in 2030; It is followed by aerospace, which will reach $3.
9 billion
.
”

China's Group III base oil will continue to rely on imports

According to Exuns statistics, China's base oil supply has undergone a sharp shift
from API Class I to Class II in the past 20 years.
At the same time, China's consumption of API Group III base oils has grown significantly, which is one of
the reasons why China continues to import large quantities of Group III base oils.
In recent years, some of China's domestic refiners have established their own Class III base oil production units
.
However, these facilities do not meet the needs of
the domestic market.
One analyst said this would lead to imports continuing to dominate China's Class III base oil market
.
Industry insiders said that the lack of production capacity is the main reason why China's class III base oil continues to rely on imports, although China has built some class III base oil production equipment in recent years, but the real supply to the market is not much, such as Lu'an Group has 350,000 tons / year of coal-based class III base oil production capacity, but the actual output may only be about 100,000 tons / year
.