Petrochemical Makers Get Import Quota Oil refiners not happy with change, which doesn't raise over-all level of imports The oil import control program has been revised to give petrochemical producers, for the first time, a quota for imported feedstocks. Under the present program, petrochemical pro ducers were eligible for a quota only as part of their oil refining operations. However, it is uncertain whether the new quotas will be big enough to sat isfy the petrochemical industry. The revised program also brings
petrochemical operations in foreign trade zones under control of the quota system for the first time. Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall says that this effectively plugs a potential loop hole in the oil import control pro gram. Union Carbide calls the change in the import control program "extremely gratifying" and points out that it is "a long step forward toward adoption of
the principle of equity between pe troleum refiners and other petro chemical producers." However, Car bide wants to study the level of feed stock allocations for petrochemicals before assessing the effect of the change. Oil refiners are not happy with the change in the import control program. The reason is that the over-all level of permissible imports has not been changed. This means that allocations for petrochemical producers and for the big petrochemical complex that Phillips is building in Puerto Rico will have to come out of the oil refiners' al locations. Domestic oil producers, who had hoped for a sharp cutback in
Nobel Prizes Awarded in Traditional Stockholm Ceremony Three Americansone chemist and two physicists—among those honored
CHEMISTRY. Dr. R. B. Woodward of Harvard walks past royalty after receiving his prize in chemistry. Left to right are Sweden's Crown Prince Carl Gustaf and Prin cess Sibylla, the king, and Denmark's Princess Margaretha and Prince Dertil
MEDICINE. Prof. Francois Jacob, No bel laureate in medicine, receives his prize from Sweden's King Gustaf Adolf. Sharing this prize were Prof. Andre Lwoff and Prof. Jacques Μ ο nod; the three are with Pasteur Institute 18
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imports, are not happy with the change either. The Independent Petroleum Association of America promises that it "will not relent in its efforts" to cut oil imports. The Interior Department has tentatively set 32,000 barrels a day as the quota for petrochemical producers. Of this amount, 30,000 barrels a day would be available to petrochemical producers located east of the Rocky Mountains; 2000 barrels a day would be allocated to West Coast producers. Individual company allocations would be a fixed percentage of the feedstock used in the previous year. Individual companies should receive quotas
equivalent to about 10% of their feedstock requirements. Companies which both refine oil and produce petrochemicals and now have an import quota based on refinery operations will not receive an additional quota under the petrochemical allocation system. Interior has given industry until Jan. 3 to comment on the proposed petrochemical quotas. And critical comments should be forthcoming. At earlier hearings on the import control program, many petrochemical producers argued that restrictions on imports of petrochemical feedstocks should be lifted completely (C&EN, Nov. 8, page 4 2 ) .
LAUREATES. The Nobel Prize winners after the presentation: left to right—Dr. Woodward, Dr. Julian Schwinger, Dr. Richard D. Feynman, Prof. Jacob, Prof. Lwoff, Prof. Monod, and Michail Sholokhov of the U.S.S.R., winner in literature
PHYSICS. The Swedish king talks with Dr. Julian Schwinger. The Harvard physicist shared the physics prize with Caltech's Dr. Feynman and Japan's Dr. Shinichiro Tomonaga, who was unable to attend the ceremony. Dr. Tomonaga received his prize at the Swedish embassy in Tokyo
Commercial Solvents, Reichhold Plan Merger Commercial Solvents Corp. and Reichhold Chemicals are planning to merge. Approved in principle by the directors of both companies, the proposed merger is still subject to approval of stockholders and a favorable tax ruling. If the plan goes through, it would form a $200 million plus operation, in terms of annual sales. The merger would involve exchange of CSC common and preferred shares for the 4,653,753 shares of Reichhold's outstanding common stock. CSC would issue 0.278 share of its common stock and 0.074 share of a proposed new CSC convertible, voting, preferred stock for each share of Reichhold common. The proposed new CSC preferred stock would be noncallable for five years, after which it would be callable at $52.50 per share initially and subsequently on a declining scale. The outstanding shares of Reichhold preferred stock would either be redeemed by Reichhold prior to the merger or exchanged in the merger of CSC preferred stock having about the same terms. CSC net sales for 1964 totaled $93.1 million. For the first nine months of 1965, sales amounted to $66.2 million with earnings per share of $1.46. Reichhold's sales last year were $117.2 million. For the first nine months of 1965, the firm had sales of $92.4 million with per-share earnings of 48 cents. The combined total assets of the two firms, as of Dec. 31, 1964, were about $203.2 million. Reichhold makes plastics, raw materials for plastics, adhesives, and industrial chemicals. The firm has 25 plants in the U.S. and associated plants in 25 foreign nations. CSC and its subsidiaries make nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers, pesticides, animal nutrition products, and basic, intermediate, and specialty chemicals. In pharmaceuticals, it produces bacitracin and cycloserine in the U.S. and ethical and proprietary drugs in Italy. The preliminary merger plan calls for CSC president Maynard C. Wheeler to be president and chief executive officer of CSC-Reichhold, which would be the name of the new company. Reichhold's chairman, Henry H. Reichhold, would become chairman of the board. Stefan H. Baum, president of Reichhold, would become vice chairman. DEC.
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