Shell Chemicals sees big opportunities in China for foreign chemical companies
22 Sep '05
2 min read
Petrochemical building blocks delivering firm Shell Chemicals executive announced that they have seen big opportunities in China.
Over the next five to 10 years, China's continuing and rapid economic growth and its programme to liberalise trade will offer very significant business opportunities for foreign chemical companies. These will include opportunities to export products to China and to manufacture and trade within the country, Shell Chemicals' Colin McKendrick today told Chemical Week's Shanghai conference.
However, he said there are also significant challenges in prospect including the volatility and cyclicality of petrochemicals, global cost competitiveness, emerging competitors and the changing structure of China's domestic market. Furthermore, both partners and customers in China will become increasingly focused on achieving added value in their transactions with foreign chemical companies.
Mr McKendrick, who is Shell's joint venture manager for the petrochemical complex built jointly with CNOOC at Daya Bay in the southern province of Guangdong, said China has become an economic powerhouse with well above average GDP growth, and where demand for basic petrochemicals products such as ethylene, styrene and ethylene glycol is soaring.
Turning to Shell's strategy for petrochemicals in Asia and China, Mr McKendrick said that Shell's strategy is quite simple. They want to be an industry leader, with global reach, world-scale assets and low cost production.
marketing@alchempro.com
