Supply Crisis
Specialty Chemicals
28 May 2026
The MDI Squeeze: Why European Polyurethane Procurement Is Entering Its Hardest Year Since 2018
MDI supply in Europe is tighter than at any point since the 2018 Brunsbüttel force majeure. BASF is permanently reducing capacity. Covestro is constrained. Middle Eastern arbitrage supply has been removed by Hormuz. And construction demand is recovering under EU renovation mandates. The combination is structural, not cyclical.
Supply Crisis
Executive Brief
Specialty Chemicals
21 April 2026
Capacity Discipline Is Replacing Growth-at-Any-Cost
European chemical producers are exiting commodity categories, rationalising integrated sites, and redirecting capital to specialty applications. The supply surplus that defined procurement leverage from 2022 to 2025 is ending. Procurement strategies built on that assumption need to be revised.
Executive Brief
Supply Crisis
Petrochemicals
19 June 2026
The Hormuz Shock Is Not a Price Story. It Is a Supply Chain Architecture Story.
The US Iran conflict disrupted approximately 20% of global seaborne oil supply and 12% of global ethylene production. Three months later, procurement teams are discovering that the damage is structural, not cyclical — and that the supply chain designs that worked in 2024 are not adequate for the market they are operating in now.
Supply Crisis
Regulatory Brief
Specialty Chemicals
14 June 2026
The Carbon Border Adjustment Is Not a Compliance Problem. It Is a Procurement Strategy Problem.
CBAM Phase 1 financial obligations began in January 2026. For most procurement teams, the framing has been wrong from the start - and that misframing is now becoming a commercial exposure.
Regulatory Brief
Whitepaper
Petrochemicals
05 May 2026
Polyolefin Market Analyst Review - Q1 2026
A synthesis of earnings calls, investor decks, and primary research across producers and procurement teams. What actually happened, what the data says, and what procurement teams should be doing differently in Q2 and Q3 2026.
Whitepaper
Supply Crisis
Advanced Materials
03 June 2026
The Lithium Price Crash Has Not Fixed the Battery Supply Chain. It Has Deepened the Problem.
Lithium carbonate fell 88% from its 2022 peak. Chinese processing capacity did not cut proportionally. Mine-level investment has been deferred across the major hard-rock origins. And FEOC compliance has bifurcated the market in a way that the spot price does not capture. The supply chain problem is not solved by a low price.
Supply Crisis
Executive Brief
Specialty Polymers
21 April 2026
Capacity discipline is replacing growth-at-any-cost
A short executive brief on specialty polymers, feedstock diversification, and portfolio quality.
Executive Brief
Regulatory Brief
CBAM
14 March 2026
EU CBAM Phase 1 Is Live
A short regulatory brief on compliance obligations, reporting expectations, and commercial implications for chemical importers.
Regulatory Brief
