Although the supply of liquefied carbon dioxide and dry ice was plunged into a serious position due to the sudden troubles in 2016, it seems that the situation stayed comparatively stable from summer to autumn in 2017.

Some plants came across a turnaround period in the midst of summer which was the peak demand period of the year. However, there was no significant trouble at the supply side because the manufacturers took an appropriate measure taking the anticipated influences into account. In addition, the demand in itself of beverage industries declined because of the spell of bad weather for more than 20 days in August in the metropolitan area of the biggest market. In terms of a single month of September, the delivered volume from the LCO2 plant for the same purpose decreased substantially by 17%. As a result, however, an extreme tight supply from summer to autumn seems to have been avoided. 　

The sales amount of LCO2 from April to September 2017 seems to have increased by about 4% comparing with the result of last year. As for the sales to welding requirements which account for nearly half, the delivered volume seems to have stayed flat in spite of the worry about the shipbuilding market of the main user.

The highest growth was seen in the field of “Others.” The agricultural demand still remained in a good pace and it was shown in the figures. This application is aimed to promote photosynthesis for the growth of agricultural products in greenhouses and plant factories. Some main users consume several hundred tons yearly and this field has recently been drawing much attention.

The delivery of dry ice from April to September 2017 was about 180,000 tons which seems to have remained nearly flat from last year. Although it was affected by the cold summer, the demand stayed at a good pace comparatively with the online mail-order business or coop’s home delivery services. To keep a stable supply, however, import from abroad increased.
　
In contrast with the steady demand, there still remained concerns like the third Sophisticated Method of Energy Supply Structures or the probable integration of oil refineries due to the realignment of oil industry. The supply side still remained in the serious situation.

There will be five cases of new construction and expansion of LCO2 gas plant in this year and the next year, but some one of the manufacturers said, “It is most likely that we will be busy making up for the shortfall rather than catching up with the growing demand.” For LCO2 gas manufacturers, it is anticipated that the era of tightrope walking will remain unchanged.