PPG Industries will raise prices for all fiberglass shipments in North and South America by USD 0.06 per pound (1 pound = 0.454 kilogram) on 1 November 2005, largely because of sharply rising energy p…
PPG Industries will raise prices for all fiberglass shipments in North and South America by USD 0.06 per pound (1 pound = 0.454 kilogram) on 1 November 2005, largely because of sharply rising energy prices, said Victoria Holt, senior vice president, glass and fiberglass. In addition, Holt said PPG will not enter into long-term contracts without price flexibility to offset unanticipated energy and other inflationary costs outside the company“s control. Since late 2004, natural gas costs have doubled, driven in part by the impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. “The sudden, unanticipated impact to energy costs has made an already unsustainable situation even worse for energy-intensive manufacturing in the United States, and there is no clear end in sight”, said Holt in a letter to customers. “We continue to eliminate costs from our structure at every possible opportunity, but there simply is no way to recover millions of dollars of immediate cost impact due to energy. Nor is it prudent to establish firm pricing when the cost basis of our industry remains volatile”. PPG is one of the world“s largest manufacturers of continuous-strand fiberglass, with eight manufacturing facilities worldwide focused primarily on the global electronics, thermoplastics, general industrial and roofing segments. With 2004 sales of USD 9.5 billion, Pittsburgh-based PPG is also a leading global supplier of coatings, glass and chemicals.