Electrolysis plants would like to see NaOH prices go up for deliveries as of October but there is no clear trend discernible ahead of fourth-quarter contract negotiations.
Caustic soda (NaOH) manufacturers in Wetsren Europe are reportedly planning to hike prices for fourth-quarter deliveries by up to €65/t. Negotiations between NaOH suppliers and pulp and paper mills on agreements for deliveries as of October have only just begun although some parties have already started to go into detail.
The recent lack of profitability is the main driver behind the pricing plans, which lends the announcement some weight, according to industry representatives. The downturn in prices since the beginning of the year has been significant and especially prices at the lowest end of the range should see a considerable hike. Customers are opposed to the plans of electrolysis plants, pointing out that recent attempts to implement higher caustic soda prices in the market have failed because of oversupply.
<spanTimes New Roman"" lang="EN-GB">
