Wellman, a leading global manufacturer of PET resins, has said its plans to delay the previously announced modification of the polyester fibre line at its Mississippi facility in the US.
The project, which is expected to result in approximately285 million pounds per year of additional PET resin capacity, was originally scheduled to begin in the first quarter 2004.
Tom Duff, Wellman's chairman and chief executive officer, said: "In June we announced that we were modifying the existing staple fibre line at our Pearl River facility so that it could produce either solid stated PET resin or polyester fibre. We are now delaying this project until we are able to improve the project's economic return."
Duff said that the company remained committed to profitably expanding its PET resins capacity to meet customer demand and is currently in the process of expanding PET resin capacity at its Palmetto, South Carolina facility as part of a bi-lateral strategic purchasing agreement with Voridian Company.
This agreement is expected to increase PET capacity by approximately 200 million pounds in 2003 and up to 260 million pounds in future years. The PET products will be divided between the two companies and each company will market and sell its portion of the PET resin independently.
Wellman manufactures and markets polyester products, including Fortrel brand polyester fibres, and PermaClear and EcoClear brand PET (polyethylene terephthalate) packaging resins. Currently the world's largest PET plastic recycler, Wellman utilises a significant amount of recycled raw materials in its manufacturing operations.