Worldwide, polypropylene is the most successful standard plastic of all. Over the past few years, it has achieved growth rates in annual consumption of over 10%. The key advantages of PP lie in its versatility – being suitable for processing by both injection moulding and extrusion – and in its ability to substitute not only traditional materials, but also other plastics such as HDPE, PS and PVC.

According to the British market research institute, Applied Market Information Ltd (AMI, GB-Bristol), nearly 23m t polypropylene was consumed worldwide in 1997. The biggest user was North America with 6.3m t, followed by Europe with 5.9m t, South-east Asia with 5.3m t and Japan with 2.2m t. In parallel with this growth in consumption, there was also a considerable expansion of capacity, with the South-east Asian producers making the biggest jump. Although they only accounted for 8% of global production capacity in the early eighties, their share in 1997 had increased to almost one quarter, namely 6.5m t. European players accounted for the biggest share with 7.6m t, third was North America with 6.2m t, followed by Japan with 2.8m t.

Packagings, both injection-moulded and extruded, account for the biggest proportion of polypropylene in volume terms. In Europe and Japan, car suppliers are an important segment. In Europe, the film market also plays a dominant role, while Asian producers tend to focus on fibre and raffia production.

The western European PP market of the nineties has been characterised by a dynamic upward trend, although this has also been associated with the establishment of considerable overcapacities and increasing pressure on prices. For example, capacities have risen from 4.53m t in 1990 to 7.6m t last year. Over the same period, production grew from 3.89m t to 6.48m t. PP consumption in western Europe reached 5.92m t in 1997 (1990: 3.69m t), with annual growth rates of just under 10% over the last two years. For the years from 1997 to 2001, AMI is forecasting weaker growth of 5.2% per annum on average, with PP consumption reaching 7.15m t in the year 2001.

The present decade has been marked not only by capacity expansions, but also by a reshuffling on the part of the raw material manufacturers. According to the industry report, “AMI´s Guide to Polypropylene in Western Europe”, Montell, with a total capacity of 1.75m t, has the biggest production facilities in western Europe. In second place is Targor, the joint venture of BASF and Hoechst, with capacities of 1.47m t. Borealis has also crossed the million t threshold following the acquisition of PCD, and now has a PP capacity of 1.26m t.

The updated AMI Guide provides detailed information on all thirteen western Europe PP producers, as well as seven companies domiciled in eastern Europe and the Middle East who are active on this market. Data on the individual factories, capacities, process technologies and product types are included with background information on the individual companies. In addition, there are descriptions of global trends in supply and demand, as well as an overview of current production technologies, e.g. metallocene catalysis. Company profiles of five of the biggest trading companies and distributors round off the Guide.

READER SERVICE: AMI´s Guide to Polypropylene in Western Europe (English), 2nd edition 1998, 203 pages, DIN A4, soft cover, price DEM 395.00 + VAT, order via PIE-No. B 42971.