This chart shows Methanol price assessments in USA Dollar per metric ton (USD/mt) in 7 locations, as follows:
- Methanol, EUR (Europe): Methanol, export contract price, fob, Netherlands
- Methanol, SEA (Southeast Asia): Methanol, import transaction price, cif, India
- Methanol, NEA (Northeast Asia): Methanol, import contract price, cfr, Northeast Asia
- Methanol, cont, CN (China): Methanol, import contract price, cfr, China
- Methanol, US (United States): Methanol, export contract price, fob, United States
- Methanol, spot, CN (China): Methanol, import spot price, cfr, East China
- Methanol, MDE (Middle East): Methanol, export spot price, fob, Saudi Arabia (netback from cfr China)
- Methanol, CAM (Central America): Methanol, export spot price, fob, Trinidad and Tobago (netback from cif United States)
The chart above is a sample of Intratec Primary Commodity Prices. Subscribe and access now current prices of 225 commodities, including Methanol.
Data Use
Methanol prices are provided as an annual subscription where subscribers have access to reliable pricing data of 225 commodities worldwide.
Intratec's methodology employs a structured big data strategy that utilizes advanced technologies to extract publicly available data from primary sources such as governmental trade records, statistics bureaus, and international agencies.
This data is then processed through mathematical models to generate reliable assessments, published at the very beginning of each month. To better understand the data provided check Intratec Primary Commodity Prices Methodology.
Data Delivery Methods
Methanol price assessments are available via different delivery methods:
- Online charts
- Directly into Excel (using Intratec Add-in)
- Power BI dashboards
- Web API (to facilitate integration with existing workflows)
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Methanol Price Outlook
Methanol Price Outlook. The price of Methanol (contract, United States) decreased during May 2020 to 313 USD per metric ton, which represents a considerable decline of 13% compared to the previous month’s value. On a year-over-year basis, the prices of Methanol (contract, United States) decreased significantly by 28%. Meanwhile, the average price of Methanol (contract, China) amounted to 181 USD per metric ton, from 299 USD per metric ton one year earlier. On a month-over-month basis, the price of Methanol (contract, China) is 12% lower than the price one month before.
The price of Methanol (spot, China) declined throughout May 2020, reaching 160 USD per metric ton. The price is 5% lower than the average price in the previous month and 38% lower than the average price one year before. In contrast, the prices of Methanol (transaction, Southeast Asia) decreased modestly during May 2020, reaching 182 USD per metric ton, which means a decline of 3% from the previous month’s price and a decline of 37% from the previous year’s price.
The prices of Methanol (spot, Middle East) experienced a significant rise of 29 USD per metric ton from the prior month's price, to 84 USD per metric ton. Such price movement meant a rise of 51% on a monthly basis and a decrease of 61% on a yearly basis. On the other hand, in May 2020, the price of Methanol (contract, Europe) was flat when compared against the previous month's price. The May 2020 price is 29% lower than the price one year before.
The average price of Methanol (contract, Northeast Asia) was 225 USD per metric ton on May 2020 – a sharp decrease of 35 USD per metric ton, or 13%, compared with the previous month. On a year-over-year basis, the price of Methanol (contract, Northeast Asia) is 39% lower than the price one year before.
About Methanol
About Methanol. Methanol (a.k.a. Methyl Alcohol, Wood Alcohol) is an organic chemical and the simplest aliphatic alcohol as well as one of the most important chemical raw materials. It is colorless liquid at ambient temperatures with a mild, characteristic alcohol odor. Methanol was originally called wood alcohol because it was first obtained from the destructive distillation of wood. The modern method of preparing methanol is based on the direct combination of carbon monoxide gas and hydrogen (syngas) in the presence of a catalyst. Methyl Alcohol is quantitatively the second largest product from syngas, after ammonia. Methanol production is often the most suitable alternative for marketing of liquefied methane and ammonia.
The syngas used to produce methanol can be produced from virtually any carbon source. While methane and coal are common raw materials, the use of renewable feedstocks such as residue biomass from crops and forests processing is increasing. Besides the technology of its production being simple, the transportation and storage of methanol use inexpensive technology.
Methanol Handling. Since methanol is both a fire hazard and corrosive toward a variety of metals (copper, zinc, magnesium, tin, lead, aluminum) and some elastomers, equipment for storing may be made of carbon or stainless steel. Floating and fixed roof tanks are used for large-scale methanol storage. Methanol is shipped overseas in specially built tankers with capacities up to 40,000 t. Other vessels with capacities up to 3,000 t can be used to distribute the product to inland industrial regions via inland waterways, by tank cars, trucks and drums. Methanol is also transported by road and rail tank cars. Permanently coupled trains consisting of several large tank cars with common filling, discharge, and ventilation lines are used to supply large customers.
Methanol Production. Currently, Methanol is produced on an industrial scale primarily by catalytic conversion of synthesis gas (or syngas). The syngas is, in turn, most commonly produced from the natural gas reformation or by gasification of coal. The gasification process can also be used for the production of Green Methanol from biomass. Raw materials and the respective production processes employed in the manufacturing of Methanol are listed below.
- Natural gas (reforming),
- Coal/wood (gasification),
- Naphtha/vacuum residue/heavy fuel oil (partial oxidation)
Methanol Uses. The uses and applications of Methanol may vary according to its specification. The main forms of Methanol are grade A (minimum 99.85 wt% methanol, maximum 0.15 wt% water) and grade AA (minimum 99.85 wt% methanol, maximum 0.10 wt% water, maximum 0.001 wt% ethanol, maximum 0.002 wt% acetone).
Despite Methanol’s minor use as fuel, MTBE is used in the energy sector as a gasoline additive to raise the octane number. In recent years, technologies were developed for the production of chemicals and fuels from syngas, with methanol being an intermediate. Such technologies include methanol to gasoline (MTG), methanol-to-olefins (MTO) and methanol-to-propylene (MTP) processes.