Chemical and Material Shortage Alert – June 2014

The purpose of this blog is to identify chemical and material shortages reported on the Internet.  The sources of the information reported here are primarily news releases issued on the Internet.  The issue period of the news releases is June 2014.

Section I below lists those chemicals and materials that were on the previous Chemical and Material Shortage Alert list and continue to have news releases indicating they are in short supply. Click here to read the May 2014 Chemical and Material Shortage Alert list.

Section II lists the new chemicals and materials (not on the May alert).  Also provided is some explanation for the shortage and geographical information.  This blog attempts to list only actual shortage situations – those shortages that are being experienced during the period covered by the news releases.   Chemicals and materials identified in news releases as only being in danger of being in short supply status are not listed.

Section I.   Chemicals and materials that continue from May to be reported as in short supply are: iron ore (India).

Section II.   Shortages Reported in June not found on the Previous Month’s List

Lumber:  United States; supply not keeping up with demand.

Butadiene:  World-wide; production not keeping up with demand (increased natural gas, reduced petroleum as sources for petrochemicals, decreasing production of butadiene).

Reasons for Section II shortages can be broadly categorized as: 

1.  Mining not keeping up with demand: none

2.  Production not keeping up with demand: butadiene

3.  Government regulations: none

4.  Sources no longer available:  none

5.  Insufficient imports:  none

6.  Supply not keeping up with demand:  lumber