Japan Mitsubishi Chem restarts naphtha cracker

SINGAPORE Jan 13 (Reuters) - Mitsubishi Chemical Corp, the largest petrochemical firm in Japan, has restarted a 450,000 tonnes per year (tpy) naphtha cracker in Mizushima on Jan. 12, a statement showed.

The cracker was shut on Dec. 30 for repairs following a gas leakage from a corroded pipe. [ID:nT144377].

The statement did not reveal the operational rate.

"The cracker is now running at around 70-80 percent of its capacity," said a source familiar with the operations of the company, a unit of Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings (4188.T).

"There are no plans to ramp it up to 100 percent." (Reporting by Seng Li Peng; Editing by Ramthan Hussain)