U.S. Gulf:
Sources noted steady sulfuric acid pricing, calling price ideas in the $210-$215/mt CFR range.
Gulf Coast:
Sulfuric acid volumes delivered to domestic U.S. Gulf Coast locations were reported at $85-$110/st DEL.
Midwest:
Annual Midwest contracts were quoted even with the Gulf Coast at $85-$110/st DEL.
West Coast:
Falling production at a Rio Tinto aluminum smelter in British Columbia is unlikely to impact either the domestic U.S. or international sulfuric acid markets, players indicated.
Rio Tinto on July 26 announced it had begun reducing production at its BC Works smelter in Kitimat, B.C., in response to a 72-hour strike notice issued by the Unifor Local 2301 union. Production at the 432,000 mt/y facility is expected to taper to approximately 35 percent of total capacity.
Unifor called for the work stoppage after failing to agree on an updated employment contract at the site. About 900 of the plant’s 1,050 employees are Unifor members.
Annual West Coast contracts were reported in the $100-$130/st DEL range, unmoved from the prior report.
Brazil:
Brazil spot cargoes were noted holding at the $225-$230/mt CFR level after recording a large jump in the prior report.
Sources attributed the market’s recent firming in persistent supply tightness and uncertainty in the Northwest European market, where historic flooding in Germany was reported to impact production at the 155,000 mt/y Berzelius Stolberg lead smelter, prompting a declaration of force majeure earlier in July.
“Stolberg will keep things tight, as they have been,” said one player. Production was also reportedly halted at the nearby Aurubis copper products factory due to flooding.