Integration and Isolation in the Global Petrochemical Industry: A Multiscalar Corporate Network Analysis

Figures & data

Table 1 Sampled Companies, with Data Extracted from the List of Top Fifty Chemical Companies in 2016 according to Chemical & Engineering News (https://cen.acs.org/sections/global-top-50.html)

2016 Ranking	Change from 2007	Company	Headquarters Location	Chemical Sales ($ Million)
1	+1	DowDuPont	US	$67,837
2	−1	BASF	Germany	$60,654
3	+3	Sinopec	China	$42,815
4	+3	SABIC	Saudi Arabia	$30,986
5	+5	Formosa Plastics	Taiwan	$27,141
6	−1	ExxonMobil	US	$26,058
7	+6	LyondellBasell	Netherlands	$24,624
8	−4	INEOS	Switzerland	$23,530
9	+3	Mitsubishi Chemical	Japan	$23,358
10	+8	Air Liquide	France	$19,554
…	…	…	…	…
17	+4	Reliance Industries	India	$13,769
18	+18	Braskem	Brazil	$13,692
42	−1	Sasol	South Africa	$7,148
48	NA	PTT Global Chemical	Thailand	$6,151

Note: For the merged companies DowDuPont and LyondellBasell the highest ranked partner in 2006 was used for the calculation.

Figure 1. Corporate board interlock network based on indirect interlocks through other companies (left) and through policy-planning institutes, other organizations, and states (right)

Note: White squares: companies based in Europe and the US; dark grey squares: post–World War II Asian entrants; light grey squares: companies from emerging economies. Tie width represents the number of interlocks, and metric multidimensional scaling was applied.

Table 2 Summary of Results of the Multiscalar Corporate Network Analysis through the Concepts of Contextuality, Path Dependence, and Contingency

	Contextuality	Path Dependence	Contingency
Corporate board networks	Companies have different ownership structures, and varying international ambitions may lead to more inward-or outward-looking corporate boards.	Resilient Western elite networks remain centered on the North Atlantic petrochemical heartland, while emerging economy elites remain isolated.	Some corporate links deviate from the general pattern of isolation of emerging economy elite networks (e.g., Braskem-ExxonMobil).
Joint venture networks	Different company strategies (e.g., vertical integration versus specialization) and close ties with (state-controlled) oil companies influence different joint venture networks.	Specific business histories (e.g., BASF in China) and geopolitical relationships (e.g., between the US and Saudi Arabia) form foundations for joint venture creation.	Fixed life span and limited scope of operations of joint ventures allows for strategic collaborations between Western and emerging economy corporations, to adapt to economic change and uncertainty.
Spatial interlock networks	Different corporate ambitions (e.g., regional versus global leadership) lead to different geographic networks and locations of activities. Importance of gateway cities and THOFCS in reorienting subsidiary networks.	Subsidiary networks of Western companies form the backbone of the global spatial organization of the industry to which all new corporations connect to some extent. Continuing importance of established Western petrochemical power centers.	Some Asian and emerging economy corporations develop detached regional subsidiary networks and take a peripheral position in the global spatial organization (e.g., Sinopec). Emergence of new strategic power centers in Asia and South America.

Figure 2. Joint venture interlock network based on direct joint venture integration (left) and through joint ventures with the same external companies (right)

Note: White squares: companies based in Europe and the US; dark grey squares: post–World War II Asian entrants; light grey squares: companies from emerging economies. Tie width represents the number of interlocks, and metric multidimensional scaling was applied.

Figure 3. Spatial interlock network based on absolute number of overlapping locations (left side) and relative number (right side)

Note: White squares: companies based in Europe and the US; dark grey squares: post–World War II Asian entrants; light grey squares: companies from emerging economies. Tie width represents the degree of spatial interlocking, and metric multidimensional scaling was applied.

Figure 4. Location of meeting points where the subsidiary networks of American and European corporations integrate with those of Asian and emerging economies corporations