Commercial productioninvolves conversion of toluene to a diamine which is reacted withphosgene to yield TDI, a liquid used mainly for flexible polyurethanefoams. Olin is adding capacity to bringits Lake Charles plant up to 300 million pounds by mid-1997. Under the agreements,Arco has marketing rights to the French company's production at Lilleand Point de Claix. Combined capacity of the two plants is estimated at265 million pounds annually. Average annualexports during the 1991-1995 period amounted to 202 million pounds.
Exports remain strong.
It's believed earlier threats posed by the phaseout ofchlorofluorocarbons are now behind the industry. TDI producers say their businessis off slightly from last year in both housing and automotive outlets. The recent tight supply situation is attributed more to poorly timedindustry turnarounds and some production problems than to any big surgein demand. Growth of TDI in developing countries, however, isprojected to be approximately twice their GDP rate. This bodes well forUS exports, which have averaged over 200 million pounds per year for thepast five years.