Artlant, Europe's largest purified terephthalic acid producer, is in the process of searching for an investment partner or buyer for the business, a source close to the company said Thursday.
As a result, any plans to start up production in January have been pushed back and the company has suspended all contractual feedstock negotiations for paraxylene and acetic acid, the source added.
The source said that the company was hopeful of having news of a deal by the end of the year or at the beginning of next year.
Artlant CEO Marco Vantaggiato declined to comment on the matter when contacted by Platts Thursday, but said: "We are not producing [PTA]." The company's 700,000 mt/year plant based in Sines, Portugal, started production in early 2012 at a time when global output was in oversupply, with a number of Asian producers having added to global supply.
However, the plant struggled to compete with its Asian counterparts in the production of PTA and polyethylene terephthalate amid weakening demand, and the facility was shut in April 2014.
The plant had been scheduled to restart on October 1, although it remains idled.
