Shell Chemicals (London / UK; www.shell.com) declared “force majeure” on 11 January 2007 for ethylene (C2) und propylene (C3) from Wesseling / Germany. Cracker 2B, one of two at the site, went down on 8 January due to technical problems. A company spokesperson said it is not yet clear when the 240,000 t/y plant will be up and running again.