Glossary

East Asia is defined as containing the following countries: China (including Hong Kong), Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan

Eastern Europe is defined as containing the following countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

One of the three elements of our End-Use Consumption analysis requires a correlation with an indicator of Economic Growth in a given region. The analysis uses a multiplier on this Economic Growth indicator to calculate these elements' contribution to the growth in demand for the product. The most common indicator used in our system is GDP as this is commonly understood and readily available around the world. Alternative indicators include Population, Industrial Production, Construction Activity etc.

Nexant models consumption in two distinct ways; Firstly by consumption as feedstock for making petrochemicsals, and secondly as an "End-Use". This second form of demand models the consumption of a product in the wider economy as distinct from use as a petrochemical intermediate. End-Use consumption is modelled using a combination of multipliers on key economic indices along with a penetration effect. Nexant aggregates these End-Uses into one "End-Use" when displaying a regional total as the End-Use sectors modelled in each country within a given region can vary.

The End-Use for a petrochemical intermediate / product is a term used to describe the aggregate consumption of a given chemical into a homogenous industrial/consumer sector. End-Uses can be contrasted with petrochemical demand as a feedstock (eg ethylene demand into PE) which is classified here as Derivative Consumption

The Engineering Polymers are a grouping of specialised polymer materials that have been "engineered" to have specific materials properties. These generally relate to high strength as well as temperature and chemical resistance. These materials are costly to make and rely on their high performance characteristics as cost reduction programs provide OEM producers with a strong incentive to replace them with lower cost commodity polymers.

Ethane is a two-carbon hydrocarbon. At standard temperature and pressure, ethane is a colourless, odourless gas. Ethane is produced on an industrial scale either by extraction from natural and associated gas, or as a byproduct of petroleum refining. Its chief use is as petrochemical feedstock in steam crackers for ethylene production.

Ethanol is a two-carbon alcohol which are mainly industrially produced in two ways: by fermentation processes (using starches, sugar crops or lignocellulose as feedstock) which produces fuel grade, or by the catalytic hydration of ethylene (industrial grade). Around 95 percent of globally manufacture ethanol is sourced from the fermentation process. Industrial ethanol is used in the manufacture of several chemicals, acting, in the main, as an intermediate. It is also used as a solvent. The main use for ethanol via fermentation is in fuel. Fuel grade ethanol is used as a substitute for gasoline.

Ethyl Chloride (chloroethane) is produced by the addition of hydrogen chloride to ethylene over an aluminum chloride catalyst. It is also generated as a co-product of PVC. Ethyl chloride's major use was in the production of tetraethyl lead (TEL) used as an anti-knock additive in gasoline, but its use for this application has been phased-out by most countries since leaded gasoline has been prohibited. The main current application is in thickening of cellulose for making ethyl cellulose, a thickening agent for paints and cosmetics. It is also used as a solvent, refrigerant, aerosol propellant, anesthetic and blowing agent for foam packaging.

Ethylbenzene (EB), an aromatic liquid hydrocarbon, is a chemical intermediate made from the reaction of benzene and ethylene. It is a precursor to styrene production.

Ethylene is the most basic member of the olefin chemical family, consisting of two carbon atoms joined by a double bond. The ready accessibility and high reactivity of this double bond lends the molecule to many synthesis reactions, including its most common use as a monomer for producing polyethylenes. Ethylene is industrially produced by the pyrolytic cracking in a steam cracker of a wide variety of hydrocarbons, ranging from ethane to gas oil.

Ethylene Di-Chloride (EDC) is the first molecule produced in the vinyls chain and is a toxic, flammable, and corrosive liquid at room temperature. EDC is most commonly formed from ethylene and chlorine, both of which are costly and difficult to transport, and thus EDC production is normally located close to sources of such raw materials. EDC is principally used for VCM production, with small amounts used for the manufacture of other organic compounds.

Ethylene oxide (EO) has widespread uses in the production of surfactants although its largest and fastest growing End-Use is in the production of monoethylene glycol (MEG). EO is grouped with polyester intermediates, as the majority is eventually consumed in the production of PET. EO is produced by reacting ethylene and oxygen over mainly silver-based catalysts. Due to its hazardous nature, minimal volumes of EO are transported, and production tends to be from complexes including both ethylene feedstock and EO derivatives. Production is widespread globally, with development mainly in the Middle East and Asia.

Europe/Middle East/Africa is defined as containing the following countries: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia, Botswana, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Latvia, Libya, Lithuania, Macedonia (FYRO), Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia & Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, UAE, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, Zambia, Zimbabwe

The Expansion report allows the user to quickly visualise the annual change in production capacity in a given region. Data can be displayed in a chart or table.

We refer to Financing in our Capacity Analysis to ensure that any planned new capacity has a source of funds to finance the construction of the new unit. This financing can be from the owners, from banks or from Government sources.

Firm Capacity is the annualised capacity which is either already existant, or in the event of future dates includes capacities for projects which we are certain will come to fruition. The firm capacity total reflects our internal estimation of when new projects will enter operations, which can in some cases differ from the dates proposed by the project developers.

The Fixed Costs presented here are those directly involved in running the plant and supporting the business that sells product from the plant. It is calculated as a summation of the Direct (plant costs) and Allocated Costs (business costs) as is presented per unit of main product. Fixed Costs do not include any allowance for corporate costs.

An FCC Unit (Fluidised Catalytic Cracker) is a refinery operation that upgrades the heavy oil fraction from an atmospheric distillation column into lighter, more valuable components. The main purpose of the FCC unit is to increase the gasoline yield on the refinery, however the unit can also produce significant amount of propylene. Typical yields provide 6 percent propylene by weight, although careful selection of catalyst can boost this yield to 20 percent albeit at the expense of gasoline production.

Foreman are the shift team leaders, with one leader available for each shift.

Formaldehyde is pungent-smelling gas that dissolves readily in water to form a 37% formaldehyde solution known as formalin. Formaldehyde is produced industrially by the oxidation of methanol over a metal catalyst. Formalin is used as a disinfectant and as a preservative medium for biological specimens. The main industrial application of formaldehyde, however, is in the production of urea-formaldehyde (UF), phenol-formaldehyde (PF) and melamine-formaldehyde (MF) resins for the manufacture of wood adhesives (e.g. for plywood and chipboard) and other applications.

The Freight charge covers the cost for marketing and moving the product from the plant to the point of sale. This point of sale is dependent on the price quotation; common basis include FOB (Free On Board), CFR (Carriage and Freight) and FD (Free Delivered) reflecting increasing cost to the producer as he incurs cost moving product to the delivery point. This cost includes any fixed costs associated with warehousing.

Fuel Oil is the term used to define the heavy distillate stream produced from refinery operations. It is used to fuel power stations and in ships and industry. Different fuel oil grades are classified according to their viscosity and sulphur content.