Dow Chemical to raise prices up to 20 percent, blasts Washington for 'true energy crisis'

[Newsjock]

Source: Associated Press

MIDLAND, Mich. (AP) -- Dow Chemical Co. will raise product prices by up to 20 percent almost immediately to offset the soaring cost of energy and raw materials, and the CEO of the chemical giant lashed out Washington on Wednesday for failing to develop a sound energy policy.

The price increases take effect Sunday and will be based on a product's exposure to exorbitant costs. Dow said it spent $8 billion on energy and hydrocarbon-based feedstock, or raw materials, in 2002 and that could climb fourfold to $32 billion this year.

"For years, Washington has failed to address the issue of rising energy costs and, as a result, the country now faces a true energy crisis, one that is causing serious harm to America's manufacturing sector and all consumers of energy," Chairman and Chief Executive Andrew Liveris said in a statement.

"The government's failure to develop a comprehensive energy policy is causing U.S. industry to lose ground when it comes to global competitiveness, and our own domestic markets are now starting to see demand destruction throughout the U.S."



Read more: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080528/dow_price_increase.html

[Magleetis]

1. We have a comprehensive

energy policy. Just ask the oil co. execs.

[iamjoy]

2. Well, Let's Ask This

Was Dow speaking up in the 1980's when President Reagan was dismantling the energy policy laid out by President Carter?

Or, did Dow executives and lobbyists work to keep Republicans in power and vote against legislation that would have hurt them in the short run even if it was part of a long term plan?

[WCGreen]

4. Bingo....

I like how the guy blamed "Washington" when he should have placed the blame right where it lay, at the feet of the Bush wing of the Republican party...

[pacalo]

9. Yes, this goes into the "Be Careful What You Ask For Because You May Get It -- 2000/2004" files.

[boomerbust]

12. TRICKLE DOWN RONNIE

The day Ronnie removed the solar panels from the WH was a shot to all the moonbats out there. How would that have looked to the oil companies if he kept them up?

[ronnie624]

16. Thank you!

Dow Chemical has, for a very long time, been an integral part of the power structure that works to maintain the status quo. Not that I would expect anything different. Corporations are simply a part of a political system in place in the United States and increasingly the world, that values profit over the good of our society and human civilization in general. The system can't help it. Dow can't help it. That's just how a corporatist system works.

Either the system changes at its very core, or modern civilization will collapse into fascism, war and chaos, and possibly end in the extinction of our species.

[Auggie]

24. Let's ask the congresspeople and senators who held office over the last 30 years too!

[GreenPartyVoter]

27. So true

[The_Casual_Observer]

3. The policy as of 2000: "I'll jawbone OPEC to open the spigots"

He didn't even do that much.

[izquierdista]

10. He did jawbone OPEC

He used his jawbone to open wide so he could blow them.

[peacetalksforall]

5. The Republican White House exists for corporations - now one of them is

unhappy? Sounds fishy to me.

[pattmarty]

6. Jesus Christ, if industry is "jumping ship", this administration is really in deep shit.

[closeupready]

30. You always see a lot of posturing in advance of a change in administrations.

Hard to take this at face value.

[4dsc]

7. Peak oil anyone??

Darn those peak oilist's who have been claiming this would happen..

[Teaser]

18. Yes, I'll have some.

Does it come in green?

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

8. There also needs...

To be some serious clearing up of "dark" investments in the commodities markets. The Enron model, allowed because of legislation rammed through by Phil Gramm, is seriously screwing things up.

[truedelphi]

13. What legislation (Specifically) was that? I sure can see that a lot of things

Going on now look like, smell like, waddle like they are following the Enron model, but I didn't know it could be traced to perhaps one piece of legislation.

I'll be appreciating the info if you have it.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

15. I would have to dig those specifics up...

And I am just on the way out the door to install a computer. I will try to PM that info to you later.

[Baby Snooks]

11. The reality of depletion

We forget that the refineries produce far more than gasoline and our chemical industry is dependent upon the refineries. There is much more to oil dependence than filling up at the gas station.

This will contribute to higher prices on the grocery store shelves. The American people really have no idea where everything comes from. They just reach up and buy it.

It reminds me of Eva Gabor in a humorous moment responding to Eddie Albert who chastised her for wearing ostrich feathers with a "Don't be silly, feathers don't come from birds they come from pillows."

The reality is that while everyone complains about the carcinogens in our air from the refineries, they don't realize the same carcinogens are on the grocery store shelves.

[hadrons]

14. Someone find Andrew Liveris & Dow Chemical contributions to the GOP

[sofa king]

21. Here you go.

http://www.opensecrets.org/indivs/search.php?name=liveris&state=&zip=&employ=&cand=&all=Y&sort=N&capcode=9zpkm&submit=Submit

Dunno if that link to a search on opensecrets.org will work. Liveris did the usual thing and split the rails 60/40 or so among the parties. He's got the usual suspects up there: W, Romney, Spencer Abraham and Orrin Hatch, but he also slid a tidy sum to Carl Levin last year (maybe because Levin is Chairman of the Investigations Subcommittee of Governmental Affairs?) and Debbie Stabenow (from his home state) in '04. His presumed wife just forked over $2300 to Sen. Clinton and $1000 to Sen. Dodd in 2003. Mrs. Liveris has given slightly more to Democrats than Republicans. Mr. Liveris gave $1900 too much to Mitt Romney last year, and had it returned.

His biggest recipients are his own company and a certain association I'm familiar with.

[jmowreader]

17. Well, there REALLY goes the economy

If Dow's doing this, expect everyone else to. Dow's not the only one who uses petrochemical feedstocks.

[Arctic Dave]

19. I had a conversation a couple weeks ago with a lady

who was complaining about the plastic packaging that is difficult to get open (she is an assemblywomen/Bush supporter). I told her not to worry about those things anymore. At $130.00bbl we will start to see a lot less plastic for packaging.

[BadgerKid]

22. Maybe we go back to glass

if the net saving in energy expenditure is there.

[sofa king]

20. Heh. I worked for their lobbyist.

As a temp. It's amazing the sorts of insights one gains into an industry by listening to the lobbyists when they're not lobbying.

Said lobbying council was feeling left in the dust. It had taken virtual control of the EPA by having their own (six-person, I think) chemistry staff vet every proposed EPA rule before publication (and sometimes rewriting them and sending it back to "the White House," where all the important EPA decisions were really being made). But the chemistry companies all rely on a strong, cheap and steady supply of natural gas from this continent, and Dick Cheney wasn't going to come off the ball on raping America by allowing supply to remain restricted.

So, just as one would expect an evil consortium made up of the evil CEOs of evil companies to do, they tried to create a power struggle within the White House. The council fired its CEO and hired over a guy who was best pals with Karl Rove, in an attempt to get Rove to cut a deal with Cheney. They chased off their member companies which were profiting from natural gas, to prevent them from hampering their efforts. I thought it was fascinating that this association had a legislative staff larger than some Senators have, yet the legislative staff was completely boxed out of planning meetings (at least the lowest-level ones in which I was a part). They knew exactly who to go to for domestic American policy: Dick Cheney or Karl Rove, and that's it.

But they were also working the underside of the rock. They flew in editorial staff members from the Wall Street Journal, first class, and set them up with a nice hotel (and if the jokes were hiding a grain of truth, set them up with booze, drugs, and prostitutes). It was explained to me that the Wall Street Journal doesn't editorialize on anything that they can't fly first-class to "investigate" and stay in the best hotels while "investigating." The reason why is simple: a huge section of the Republican Party takes its marching orders from the Wall Street Journal's editorial page, and once they print it, they rarely retract their (often incorrect) pronouncements. So my evil temporary master showed 'em a good time and then handed them an editorial, already written so that the editors wouldn't have to trouble themselves over it.

I left before they got an answer, and never bothered to find out if they ever got it printed for their tens of thousands invested, which was only a small part of a $35 million-a-year campaign. But it was pretty clear to me that they weren't gonna get shit (well, they do get to pollute and poison exactly as much as they think they can get away with, by writing their own rules). And now that their boy Karl is busy counting his ill-gotten gains, they're never gonna get shit from these gangsters.

But never make the mistake of thinking they're on our side. They're just an off-brand of evil.

Oh, another tidbit: Know what the difference between an oil refinery and a chemical plant is? Damned near nothing. Know how many of the dozens of Gulf Coast chemical plants represented by this trade association were damaged by Hurricane Katrina? None (though some lost power for a few days). Know how many oil refineries in the exact same places were damaged for weeks? Eight.

[Delphinus]

28. Interesting bit of

insider information there. Thank you.

[4_TN_TITANS]

23. Thank-you!

Dow is a major customer of the company where I work, but the biggest whiner of their pricing. This info will come in handy.
Thanks!

[Zachstar]

25. Before everyone rushes to the rival's products.

Chemical plants get their product by active means. By either cracking oil or getting stuff out of the air. All require vast amounts of energy.

The announcement will mean the others will follow eventually.


The simple fact is this oil energy economy is going to an end. If now 5 years than a decade but enough is enough.

THERE IS NOT ENOUGH OIL!!

[Sam Ervin jret]

26. dow you are so full of shit

I can't even begin to say how full of shit this is. Words fail me.

Did Dow's work with the Libyan Ras Lanuf petrochemical Company cause it to grow a conscience? Or maybe it feels bad about napalm, or maybe DBCP?

These asshole use poison to make poison and now the raw material poison is too expensive and it's getting too hard to make a profit on their trademark poisons.

Shame. These people could have been a part of the answer but they have chosen to use and abuse the earth. They turn to "green" technologies as the price gets right and as we are drowning in the filth of the making of unscrupulous companies like this.

They say they are trying to wean themselves off of petrochemicals. I hope that is true but I have no illusion as to the reason.

[unkachuck]

29. "For years,....

....Washington has failed to address the issue of rising energy costs..."

....right on, Andy!!....I too hate those slimy, greedy, energy corporations who put profit above everything else....

....what we need is a strong Socialist party in Washington to whip those lousy capitalist bastards in line....what ya think, Andy?