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Researched by Will Ploch, Assistant Editor-in-Chief, and Trey Hamblet, Senior VP Research for Chemicals for Industrial Info
Summary
Dow Incorporated released its third-quarter Earnings Report, citing a tough global market for petrochemicals and reduced capital expenditures for 2025.
Chemicals giant Dow Incorporated (Midland, Michigan) is facing global pressure from a host of new players in the petrochemicals market, particularly from China, and the resulting glut in output across the industry is pushing down prices and hitting its bottom line. Still, executives believe Dow will stay atop its industry during a period of shaky demand, pointing to major capacity additions in North America.
Industrial Info is tracking nearly $10 billion worth of active and proposed projects from Dow across the U.S. and Canada, about two-thirds of which is attributed to projects under construction.
Polyethylene Key to Dow's Growth Plans
Jim Fitterling, the chief executive officer of Dow, acknowledged in a quarterly earnings-related press release that slowdowns in industrial production and the housing market also have weakened the company's overall sales. But Fitterling said Dow "captured resilient demand from our new polyethylene and alkoxylation assets in the U.S. Gulf Coast, delivering sequential volume and earnings growth in key end markets at higher margins."
Those assets include Dow's chemical complex in Seadrift, Texas, which is nearing the completion of a expansion of its alkoxylation unit, which produces polyethylene glycol. In addition to boosting capacity, Dow is adding storage tanks and railcar-loading spots at the Seadrift complex.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Chemical Processing Project and Plant databases can learn more about the Seadrift development--including capacities, investment values and necessary equipment--from a detailed project report and plant profile.
Other polyethylene buildouts underway include Dow's Path2Zero expansion project at its complex in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta. As part of what the company calls "the world's first net-zero emissions integrated ethylene cracker and derivatives site," Dow is retrofitting a trio of production trains at the facility to reduce carbon emissions and significantly boost capacity.
Subscribers can learn more about the Path2Zero project from a detailed project report and plant profile.
Polyethylene is the most produced plastic and is widely used in consumer and industrial products. The sector for plastic and rubber products boasts more than $24 billion worth of active and planned projects in the U.S. alone, nearly $13 billion of which are under construction.
Readers can learn more about these trends in Industrial Info's July 25, 2025, article - Plastic & Rubber Products Sector Leads to $12.7 Billion in Current U.S. Construction.
By the Numbers
Dow Aims to Balance Capacity Growth with Spending Cuts
Also at its Fort Saskatchewan site, Dow is constructing a net-zero ethylene unit, which will convert off-gas from the ethylene cracker into hydrogen. Carbon dioxide (CO2) captured from the process will be stored in a nearby facility. The project is being developed in tandem with Linde plc's (Dublin, Ireland) air-separation and hydrogen expansion at its complex in Fort Saskatchewan and will utilize Linde's technology.
Industry watchers should expect the Path2Zero project to progress slowly. Dow has acknowledged it is slowing development of the project in the midst of weak global demand. Nonetheless, the project retains an active status in Industrial Info's GMI Project Database.
Subscribers can read detailed reports on Dow's ethylene unit and Linde's air-separation and hydrogen expansion.
Despite these big-ticket buildouts, Fitterling expects Dow to achieve "a reduction in capex [capital expenditure] spending of $1 billion this year, as well as the accelerated delivery of our previously announced $1 billion in targeted cost reductions by the end of 2026." Dow now expects its capex for 2025 to total roughly $2.5 billion.
Dow's net sales for the third quarter were reported to be $10 billion, an 8% drop from third-quarter 2024, while net income stood at $124 million, a drop of nearly 50% from the same period last year.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and proposed projects across the U.S. and Canada from Dow.
Key Takeaways
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
Summary
Dow Incorporated released its third-quarter Earnings Report, citing a tough global market for petrochemicals and reduced capital expenditures for 2025.
Chemicals giant Dow Incorporated (Midland, Michigan) is facing global pressure from a host of new players in the petrochemicals market, particularly from China, and the resulting glut in output across the industry is pushing down prices and hitting its bottom line. Still, executives believe Dow will stay atop its industry during a period of shaky demand, pointing to major capacity additions in North America.
Industrial Info is tracking nearly $10 billion worth of active and proposed projects from Dow across the U.S. and Canada, about two-thirds of which is attributed to projects under construction.
Polyethylene Key to Dow's Growth Plans
Jim Fitterling, the chief executive officer of Dow, acknowledged in a quarterly earnings-related press release that slowdowns in industrial production and the housing market also have weakened the company's overall sales. But Fitterling said Dow "captured resilient demand from our new polyethylene and alkoxylation assets in the U.S. Gulf Coast, delivering sequential volume and earnings growth in key end markets at higher margins."
Those assets include Dow's chemical complex in Seadrift, Texas, which is nearing the completion of a expansion of its alkoxylation unit, which produces polyethylene glycol. In addition to boosting capacity, Dow is adding storage tanks and railcar-loading spots at the Seadrift complex.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Chemical Processing Project and Plant databases can learn more about the Seadrift development--including capacities, investment values and necessary equipment--from a detailed project report and plant profile.
Other polyethylene buildouts underway include Dow's Path2Zero expansion project at its complex in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta. As part of what the company calls "the world's first net-zero emissions integrated ethylene cracker and derivatives site," Dow is retrofitting a trio of production trains at the facility to reduce carbon emissions and significantly boost capacity.
Subscribers can learn more about the Path2Zero project from a detailed project report and plant profile.
Polyethylene is the most produced plastic and is widely used in consumer and industrial products. The sector for plastic and rubber products boasts more than $24 billion worth of active and planned projects in the U.S. alone, nearly $13 billion of which are under construction.
Readers can learn more about these trends in Industrial Info's July 25, 2025, article - Plastic & Rubber Products Sector Leads to $12.7 Billion in Current U.S. Construction.
By the Numbers
- Industrial Info tracking $10 billion worth of Dow projects in the U.S. and Canada
- Dow is reducing capex by $1 billion for 2025
- Industrial Info is tracking $24 billion worth of projects for plastic and rubber products in the U.S.
Dow Aims to Balance Capacity Growth with Spending Cuts
Also at its Fort Saskatchewan site, Dow is constructing a net-zero ethylene unit, which will convert off-gas from the ethylene cracker into hydrogen. Carbon dioxide (CO2) captured from the process will be stored in a nearby facility. The project is being developed in tandem with Linde plc's (Dublin, Ireland) air-separation and hydrogen expansion at its complex in Fort Saskatchewan and will utilize Linde's technology.
Industry watchers should expect the Path2Zero project to progress slowly. Dow has acknowledged it is slowing development of the project in the midst of weak global demand. Nonetheless, the project retains an active status in Industrial Info's GMI Project Database.
Subscribers can read detailed reports on Dow's ethylene unit and Linde's air-separation and hydrogen expansion.
Despite these big-ticket buildouts, Fitterling expects Dow to achieve "a reduction in capex [capital expenditure] spending of $1 billion this year, as well as the accelerated delivery of our previously announced $1 billion in targeted cost reductions by the end of 2026." Dow now expects its capex for 2025 to total roughly $2.5 billion.
Dow's net sales for the third quarter were reported to be $10 billion, an 8% drop from third-quarter 2024, while net income stood at $124 million, a drop of nearly 50% from the same period last year.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and proposed projects across the U.S. and Canada from Dow.
Key Takeaways
- Dow faces tougher global market for petrochemicals
- Executives say new polyethylene capacity will benefit Dow in longer term
- Company aims for reduced capital expenditures for 2025
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
