[Recycled PVC Weekly Plant Dynamics] Environmental Inspection Wraps Up As Work Resumes, Rigid Recycled Production Lines Restart Slightly

This week, the overall operating rate of recycled PVC was 33.6%, up slightly by 1.2 percentage points week-on-week.

In the previous period, more than 60% of the small and medium-sized recycled PVC granulation plants in Hebei and Henan, North China, which were temporarily shut down for environmental protection, resumed production this week. However, due to the shortage of waste PVC feedstock, most are operating at only 40%-50% of their capacity. The 90,000-ton/year pipe-grade rigid recycled PVC facility in Binzhou, Shandong, completed maintenance on July 12 and has gradually ramped up its load to 65%.

Regional maintenance is underway simultaneously: a 60,000 t/y flexible recycled PVC line in Xuzhou, Jiangsu began a 10-day shutdown on July 10 and is fully offline this week, resulting in a weekly capacity loss of 1,030 tons; multiple small flexible recycled PVC lines for shoe soles in Taizhou, Zhejiang are also undergoing staggered maintenance, tightening regional supply at the same time. On the feedstock side, insufficient collection volumes of waste doors/windows and scrap pipes have made major producers reluctant to run at full rates; recycled PVC plants in Vietnam continue to cut operating rates as scrap costs rise, reducing arrivals of recycled pellets to China; recycled PVC plants in Europe are operating steadily, but import arbitrage opportunities have disappeared. A 50,000 t/y rigid recycled PVC project in Fuyang, Anhui is undergoing equipment commissioning and is expected to begin trial production in August. This week, total industry capacity under maintenance stands at 220,000 tons, with a weekly capacity loss of 2,160 tons. In the short term, normalized regional environmental controls will limit any significant increase in recycled PVC operating rates.

The data in this article is compiled from publicly available information and is for market reference only. It does not constitute any investment or trading advice.