Celanese Reports Strong Second-Quarter Profits, Plans $325 Million - $350 Million CAPEX this Year

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE) (Dallas, Texas) reported last week that its second-quarter 2018 profits totaled $345 million, a 48% jump over the same period a year earlier, on the strength of its Acetyl Chain and Engineered Materials business segments. Industrial Info is tracking more than $1 billion in Celanese project activity, including a major vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) expansion in Texas that is expected to reach completion by the end of this year.

The Acetyl Chain segment's net sales of $1 billion represented a 27% increase over the same quarter in 2017, driven by strong global demand and higher prices, the company reported.

Celanese is expected to invest $325 million to $350 million in capital expenditures this year, with organic expansion projects in both the Acetyl Chain and Engineered Materials segments, company executives said last week.

Todd Elliot, senior vice president for the Acetyl Chain business, noted during the company's earnings conference call that the company's VAM expansion at its Clear Lake facility in Pasadena, Texas, is expected to reach completion this year. The project will expand the VAM capacity to 450,000 tons per year from the present 300,000 tons. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

In addition to the VAM expansion at its Clear Lake facility, Celanese is working to increase VAM capacity at all five of its VAM units by 150,000 tons per year by 2020 through technology debottlenecks, plus 140,000 tons per year of acetic acid capacity, Elliot said.

Celanese executives made no mention of any specific plans to increase methanol production. When asked about the possibility of new methanol investments, Chief Executive Office Mark Rohr said he was open to new investments via partnerships, or even a separate methanol business.

Industrial Info is tracking a potential 1.3 million-metric-ton-per-year methanol unit addition at its site in Bishop, Texas. The project remains in the planning stage. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

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