IOL Fluorochemical Weekly Report: Driven by high temperature weather, the refrigerant market continues to have a high atmosphere

One week market
Refrigerant: Driven by high temperature weather and supported by peak demand season, the market continues to have a high atmosphere
This week, the downstream refrigerant market is in the traditional peak season, and the market continues to have a high momentum. Market characteristics: Upstream basic raw materials such as fluorite powder and hydrofluoric acid have sufficient supply, and prices are temporarily stable; The rest of the raw material products are affected by poor overall downstream trading, with prices falling more and rising less. The overall fluctuation of raw materials is relatively small. Affected by different supply and demand patterns, refrigerant products operate differently, with popular refrigerant products being produced at full capacity, while other products are mainly produced on demand. Driven by high temperatures, the downstream air conditioning, automotive, and refrigeration industries have entered the peak production season, with increased production and sales supporting strong demand for corresponding refrigerants. The demand for R32 domestic and foreign sales is strong, and the situation of tight goods and high prices will continue. According to the latest customs data, the export volume of R32 in March was about 6000 tons, a year-on-year increase of 34%. Due to the tight supply of component product R32, the price of R410A is also running steadily; R134a is mainly driven by the after-sales demand for automotive refrigerants, with peak season demand supporting stable prices. Overall, with the combination of quota control and demand growth, the supply and demand pattern of HFCs may continue to optimize, and future prices are expected to break through new highs.

Fluorinated polymers: significant overcapacity, mainstream product prices running low
This week, the fluorine-containing polymer market continued to experience temporary and structural overcapacity, with mainstream product prices running at a low level, and only a few segmented uses performing slightly better. The basic raw materials on the cost side are also fully matched, but insufficient demand has led to a sluggish industrial chain, making it difficult to form a positive transmission from upstream to midstream, and then to downstream. The prices of individual products R22 and R142B have remained stable for a long time, providing stable cost support for TFE and VDF series products. In recent years, TFE series and VDF series production enterprises have continuously extended to the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain, filling in the gaps and strengthening cost control. The impact of raw material price fluctuations on fluorine materials has gradually been digested internally by the enterprises. The demand for PTFE, FKM, FEP, PVDF and other products in traditional fields such as aerospace and electronics remains stable, while new demands for new energy, lithium batteries, semiconductors and other industries continue to grow rapidly. In summary, due to slow global economic growth, the supply growth rate of mainstream fluoropolymers is faster than the demand growth rate, and overcapacity needs to be digested. The future fluorine material market will continue to improve.

This Week
01
Dongyue Green Cold 200 tons/year Tetrafluoropropene Pilot Project Announcement
Recently, the draft for soliciting opinions on the environmental impact assessment of the 200 ton/year tetrafluoropropene pilot project of Shandong Dongyue Green Cold Technology Co., Ltd. was released. The project has a total investment of approximately 36.9175 million yuan, mainly consisting of raw material units, reaction units, water alkali washing units, refining units, storage areas, etc. The main equipment includes 310 sets of reaction vessels, distillation towers, compressors, etc. The product scale is an annual production of 200 tons of tetrafluoropropene.
02
Sinochem Blue Sky Honeywell New Materials Co., Ltd. was awarded the title of "Green Factory" in Jiangsu Province
Recently, the Taicang factory under Honeywell Energy and Sustainable Technologies Group was successfully selected for the 2024 Jiangsu Province Green Manufacturing List by the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology for its outstanding performance in sustainable manufacturing and operation, and was awarded the title of "Green Factory" Demonstration Enterprise. It is reported that the refrigerant products produced by the factory are widely used in global cold chain, supermarkets, building construction, automotive air conditioning and other fields, and are exported to many countries and regions such as Japan, South Korea, the United States, and Europe. In recent years, the Taicang factory has actively promoted multiple sustainable improvement projects, implementing measures such as adding material recycling systems to filling stations, recycling reclaimed water, and recycling organic waste gas. With an annual recycling capacity of over 500 tons of materials, the factory aims to achieve a deep integration between technological innovation and green development.
03
Gansu Haituo Chemical 200 ton Fluorine Lubricating Oil Production Line Construction Project Announcement
Recently, the draft environmental impact assessment report for the construction project of a 200 ton annual production line for fluorine lubricating oil and grease by Jinta County Haituo Chemical Co., Ltd. was publicly released for the second time. The project is located in the Chemical Industry Zone of Beihewan Circular Economy Industrial Park, Jinta County, Gansu Province. It plans to invest 80 million yuan to build a 100 ton/year fluorine gas production line in the existing site (East District) and a 200 ton/year perfluoropolyether production line in the existing site (East District).
04
The 10000 ton/year PVDF technology renovation project of Huojia Industrial Co., Ltd. in Changzhi City has been approved
Recently, the Department of Ecology and Environment of Shanxi Province has approved the Environmental Impact Assessment Report for the 10000 tons/year PVDF technology renovation project of Huojia Industrial Co., Ltd. in Changzhi City. The project is located in Shanxi Hanshan Industrial Park, Luzhou District, Changzhi City, with a total investment of 598.66 million yuan. It is committed to transforming and upgrading from low-end traditional PVC resin to resin in the new energy field. It uses liquid chlorine provided by Changzhi Huojia Industrial Co., Ltd.'s caustic soda project and purchased 1,1-difluoroethane (R152a) as raw materials to produce polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) resin.