Isopropanol: Production
Why Chinese IPA sells far below Western prices
What this tab covers Who makes it and how much: world capacity and output, utilisation, the top producing countries and companies globally and in India, concentration, new capacity coming, and each region's position.| Measure | Figure | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| World capacity | about 3.5-4 Mt/yr globally (indicative) | indicative (industry estimates) | |
| World output | about 3 Mt (2025, indicative) | indicative | |
| Capacity utilisation | about 75-85% (indicative) | Chinese acetone-hydrogenation capacity has grown and pushed Chinese prices well below Western levels ($872/t vs $1,393/t in Q3 2025, IMARC). | IMARC Dec 2025; indicative |
| Concentration | top 3 countries about 70% (indicative) | Main producers include Shell, ExxonMobil, Dow, INEOS, Sasol, LCY Chemical, Isu Chemical, LG Chem, Mitsui Chemicals and Tokuyama (indicative). | indicative |
| New capacity | mostly Chinese acetone-hydrogenation and electronic-grade units (indicative) | New electronic-grade IPA capacity is being built near fabs in Taiwan, Korea, the US and Japan (indicative). No large Indian expansion confirmed in sources reviewed. | indicative |
Top producing countries
China 30% · about 1.1 Mt/yr (indicative) United States 25% · about 0.9 Mt/yr (indicative) Western Europe 15% · about 0.55 Mt/yr (indicative) Taiwan 8% · about 0.3 Mt/yr (indicative) South Korea 6% · about 0.2 Mt/yr (indicative) Japan 6% · about 0.2 Mt/yr (indicative) indicativeLargest producers: global
| Company | Country | Volume | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shell Deer Park and Pernis (indicative) | US/Netherlands | not published | 2025 | Shell |
| ExxonMobil Baton Rouge; indirect hydration (indicative) | US | not published | 2025 | ExxonMobil |
| Dow not published | US | not published | 2025 | Dow |
| INEOS INEOS Solvents, Germany (indicative) | Germany | not published | 2025 | INEOS |
| LCY Chemical electronic-grade supplier (indicative) | Taiwan | not published | 2025 | LCY |
| Isu Chemical not published | South Korea | not published | 2025 | Isu |
| Tokuyama direct hydration; electronic grade (indicative) | Japan | not published | 2025 | Tokuyama |
Largest producers: India
| Company | Country | Volume | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Taloja, propylene route, about 70 kt/yr (indicative); applicant in the DGTR China case | India | not published | 2025 | DFPCL; fibre2fashion Aug 2024 |
| Deepak Phenolics (Deepak Nitrite) Dahej, acetone hydrogenation, about 30 kt/yr (indicative) | India | not published | 2025 | Deepak Nitrite |
India has two producers, Deepak Fertilisers and Deepak Phenolics, with about 100 kt/yr combined (indicative), against pharma-led demand that exceeds this, so imports from China, Taiwan, Korea, the US and EU fill the gap (indicative). Anti-dumping duties protect domestic makers.
Position by region
| Region | Position |
|---|---|
| US | High prices ($1,393/t in Q3 2025, IMARC); propylene-based producers. |
| EU | Prices about $1,385/t in Q3 2025 (France, IMARC); subject of Indian anti-dumping investigation from Sep 2026. |
| India | Pharma-heavy demand; protected by duties on China and potentially the EU, Korea, Taiwan, US. |
| China | Low-cost acetone-based supply; $872/t in Q3 2025 (IMARC); faces Indian duties of $82-217/t. |
| Japan | Electronic-grade supplier to fabs. |
| Middle East | Small; no major IPA producers (indicative). |