Graphite Electrode News

Related Specialty Carbon Industry News

• January 2024: CNPC hoisted and docked the top tower of the 400,000 tons/year of needle coke at the construction site in Jinzhou, China. The project is likely to be completed in the coming years.

• December 2022: Gazprom Neft announced its plans to launch a project to produce needle coke in its Omsk refinery, which will be utilized in manufacturing Li-ion batteries and graphite electrodes. This project is expected to be completed by 2024.

• December 2022: POSCO Chemical announced the agreement with Ultium Cells LLC to supply graphite anode material for the expansion of EV battery cells in the United States. In POSCO Chemical, the entire product was sourced from needle coke.

• October 2022: Syrah Resources Ltd. announced it would supply a key lithium-ion battery component to South Korea's LG Energy Solution Ltd. According to the agreement, the company was to provide 2 kilotons per annum of graphite to LG Energy Solution Ltd. active anode material (AAM) from 2025 and increase it to at least 10 ktpa after its production capacity at its Vidalia facility in Louisiana.
• October 2022: Imerys Graphite & Carbon announced the launch of a landmark lithium exploitation project (“the EMILI Project'') at its Beauvoir site (Allier département of France). The project intended to expand Imerys' position as a market leader and expert in Li-ion battery components and complete its product line, which includes synthetic graphite and carbon black, at its production facilities in Willebroek (Belgium) and Bodio (Switzerland).

September 2022: Epsilon Carbon announced an investment of INR 5.5 billion (~ USD 67.27 million) in a carbon black facility based in Vijaynagar, Karnataka. With the new investment, the company will scale its production from an installed annual capacity of 115 kilotons to 215 kilotons of carbon black material, which will be supplied to tire and non-tire market companies. The new capacity is expected to be commissioned by the end of FY 2024.

April 2022: Phillips Carbon Black Limited (PCBL), a part of RP Sanjiv Goenka Group, announced that it had begun commercial production at its INR 8 billion (~ USD 87.85 million) greenfield carbon black project in Tamil Nadu, with a capacity of 63 kilotons.

• January 2023: Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) and Showa Denko Materials Co. Ltd (formerly Hitachi Chemical Company Ltd) underwent a merger. This transformation gave rise to two distinct entities, i.e., a holding company, now known as "Resonac Holdings Corporation," and a manufacturing company, named "Resonac Corporation." This merger consolidated both companies' operations, particularly in the graphite electrode sector, streamlining their manufacturing and supply chains.

• October 2022: The Indian Metallurgical Coke Manufacturers Association (IMCOM) requested the Indian government to review taxes and duties on coking coal and metallurgical coke. The IMCOM asked for a 5% import duty on metallurgical coke to help domestic Met coke producers survive.
• August 2022: The China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) announced a decline in the average production cost of metallurgical coke of 10.13 percent. It is likely to affect the metallurgical coke market in China.

• May 2024: Ampacet expanded its ELTech portfolio, introducing a series of high-performance color masterbatches. These masterbatches utilize a polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) carrier resin and are specifically tailored for optical fiber cable PBT jacketing. The new product development is projected to benefit the company in establishing a stronger market position.
• May 2024: Cabot Corporation launched its REPLASBLAK universal circular black masterbatches crafted from certified sustainable materials. This launch marked the introduction of two pioneering products, poised to be the industry's inaugural universal circular black masterbatches boasting content certified by the International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC PLUS).

• July 2024: Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Limited approved a contract with Topsoe AS to revamp its ammonia plant in Thal, Maharashtra, India. The contract includes procuring a basic engineering design package and supplying proprietary equipment and catalysts. This project targets reducing the plant's specific energy consumption.
• October 2023: Gentari, the clean energy arm of Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), and AM Green, a producer specializing in hydrogen and ammonia, signed agreements with Singapore's investment entity, GIC. Together, they committed a substantial USD 2 billion to a shared goal of producing 5,000 kilotons annually of green ammonia in India by 2030.

• July 2024: CEMEX SAB de CV entered a joint venture with Couch Aggregates, a sand and gravel supplier, and Premier Holdings, a distributor of marine bulk products. This collaboration aims to bolster Cemex's aggregate reserves by focusing on the production, distribution, and sale of sand, gravel, and limestone in the Mid-South United States. As a result, Cemex is set to enhance its presence and offer improved, expedited services to this burgeoning region.
• July 2024: Heidelberg Materials acquired Carver Sand & Gravel, the largest aggregates producer in Albany, New York. This acquisition boosted the company’s operations, including crushed stone, sand and gravel, asphalt, and logistics, with a combined material capacity of around 3 million metric tons annually.

• June 2024: SHENMAO Technology Inc. launched a new thermal fatigue-resistant solder paste, PF918-P250. This paste can meet high-reliability requirements and offers advanced features and superior performance for electronic products requiring exceptional durability.
• October 2023: AIM Solder (UK) Ltd acquired William Rowland Limited’s solder products business, encompassing solders and alloys. Through this acquisition, the company would expand its capabilities and enhance customer offerings in the metal industry.
• September 2023: Stannol GmbH & Co. KG launched its new SP6000 solder paste in Munich. This solder paste has been developed as a standard for use with the alloys TSC305 (Sn96.5Ag3Cu0.5) T4 and TSC105 (Sn98.5Ag1Cu0.5) T4. Compared to conventional solder pastes, it can save more than 85% of CO2 emissions.

• July 2024: FUCHUS acquired the LUBCON Group, a high-performance specialty lubricant manufacturer. This strategic move bolsters FUCHUS's future prospects and enhances its global competitive edge. Through the acquisition, the enhanced product portfolio of the company will also help in serving markets in Argentina.
• March 2023: The Saudi Arabian Oil Company ('Aramco') completed the acquisition of the Valvoline Inc. global products business ('Valvoline Global Operations') for USD 2.65 billion through one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries. With this acquisition, Aramco not only expanded its product portfolio but also bolstered its foothold in Argentina.