PITTSBURGH (Sept. 22)—NOVA Chemicals Corp. has declared force majeure on supplies of styrene monomer—a key ingredient in the production of synthetic rubber—from its Bayport, Texas facility.
The company said the plant has experienced operations problems because of an unexpected power outage from its energy supplier that occurred on Feb. 27.
The declaration of force majeureùmeaning the company may not honor contracts because of a disruption caused by an act of Godùwill cause a production loss of about three weeks while remedial work is done, Nova Chemical said. That is equal to about 100 million pounds of styrene monomer.
Inventories already are low, and this action will cause a significant reduction in styrene monomer shipments from the Bayport plant, the firm said.
Chris Pappas, president of styrenics for Nova Chemicals, said with so little styrene monomer inventory at the producer or converter levels, even minor production upsets will impact the company and industry's ability to meet customer demand.