The polyolefins industry continues to undergo capacity rationalization and producer consolidation - some of it due to the increasing importance of technology. As a result, several new strategic drivers are emerging that may be expected to have ongoing long-term impacts on company competitiveness:

• the combining of technological positions in both catalyst estates and processes
  
  
• the need to establish the proper balance between commodity and specialty resins
  
  
• the drive to extract the maximum value and return from market participation

The extremes of these "drivers" can be seen in the actions already taken by leaders like Dow, Exxon, and BASF/Shell (pending). Others, to date, have failed to act. What is their intended response to both the threats and opportunities which have arisen due to these globalizing competitive forces?

Beyond these fundamental shifts, the recently announced patent dispute settlement between Dow, Exxon and Univation Technologies in metallocene catalyst technologies gives rise to other structural changes in the competitive situation. This, and other settlements, may be expected to further redefine the competitive landscape and cause significant reassessment of the strategies which are currently employed in the industry.

In order to understand the competitive impacts and potential future developments due to industry structural changes, The Catalyst Group has addressed the trend toward producer consolidation and the recent patent intellectual property resolutions. The study details the anticipated impacts, the competitors affected, and the strategic reassessments which may be merited.