TOKYO, May 11, 2012_ Ube Industries, Ltd. today announced that it will implement a global price increase for dimethyl carbonate (DMC), effective for shipments on or after June 1, 2012. Ube Industries will commence negotiations with customers regarding the price increase, which is necessitated by the increasingly tight supply and demand for DMC.
| DMC | Min. ¥30 per kg |
|---|
For shipments on or after June 1, 2012
DMC is one of Ube Industry’s core products in the fine chemicals segment, with the company being positioned as the sole manufacturer of DMC in Japan. DMC is used in plastics and in pharmaceutical and agricultural chemicals, and lately as a non-polluting paint solvent. In addition, demand for DMC used as an electrolyte solvent for lithium-ion rechargeable batteries is expected to increase sharply, as demand for eco-cars such as hybrid and electric vehicles grows to significant levels.
Ube Industries operates its own DMC production facilities in Ube City, Yamaguchi Prefecture with a production capacity of 15,000 tonnes annually. Additionally, Ube Industries has reached agreement to form a joint venture in China that will construct new production facilities with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes of DMC annually, to go online in 2013.
