Platts petrochemicals editor Daved Chohan looks into the recent developments in the European petrochemicals market: with the impending arrival of the first shipment of US shale gas to Europe.
Ineos's first ship bringing US shale gas to Europe is expected to arrive after March at the Rafnes cracker in Norway. This will be followed in the second half of 2016 by a shipment into Grangemouth, in the UK.
The arrival marks a turning point for Europe's chemical industry: for the first time US fracked gas will be used to produce European plastics.