IPA On Hold While Houston Cleans Up

April 30, 2019

Oil Tanker Waits to Unload

A massive clean-up of the Houston Ship Channel has been underway since the fire event last month at the ITC – Deer Park terminal.

The Intercontinental Terminals Company is a major storage facility for petrochemicals, located on the Houston Ship Channel. Since the fire, waterways have resumed normal operations. However, according to a ‘Situation Report’ issued by the Coast Guard on April 19, ship and barge docks at ITC- Deer Park will remain closed until further notice.

What does all this mean for Isopropyl Alcohol?

Since no cargo can be offloaded until clean up is complete, both Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA) and the raw materials used to make IPA are in vessels waiting to unload. One IPA producer, Monument Chemical, has declared force majeure on IPA, stating that ‘delays will be inevitable’.

For the time being, the backlog in the Houston port has resulted in vessels being tied up, further reducing or delaying additional imports. Major U.S. IPA producers have announced price increases. The disruption could take a few months to resolve.

CORECHEM looks forward to making sure your company has the IPA supply you need! Contact your sales representative with questions about how this may affect you.

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