Formosa Shuts PVC Unit at Point Comfort, Texas

Formosa Plastics USA shut a polyvinyl chloride line at its Point Comfort, Texas, plant following a line leak, the company said in a filing Thursday.

The unit was taken offline Wednesday following a leak in a 3-inch-diameter degas line, according to a filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The event ended Thursday, and included the release of an estimated 166.7 lb of vinyl chloride monomer.

It was unclear Thursday if the unit had returned to normal operations. Formosa declined to comment.

The Point Comfort complex has a total PVC capacity of 798,000 mt/year.

US export PVC prices were assessed Wednesday at $845-$855/mt FAS Houston, down $10/mt week on week, as market participants said pricing was lower in the wake of weaker demand and declining pricing in key regions.