The European Tertiary Butyl Alcohol (TBA) market has noted stability entering March with market fundamentals counterbalancing each other. The demand for TBA from the downstream sectors has not yet materialized as previously foreseen by the market players in the hopes of the spring revival mode. The purchase activities in the region have stayed at lower levels.  Additionally, demand has been significantly impacted by persistent macroeconomic difficulties coupled with decreased operations in crucial downstream industries such as solvent manufacturing and gasoline blending.

On the production front, the European TBA producers are maintaining reduced utilization rates, while import activities have picked up recently. Overall, the market supply is at a good level while the inquiries for TBA are muted. Furthermore, increased gasoline inventory levels have additionally reduced the hopes of any price hike, as an excess supply balances the upward pressure from the feedstock costs of TBA. As per the latest data, gasoline supplies in southern Germany have lowered gasoline prices compared to the country average owing to ample supplies and moderate demand. The availability remained adequate to fulfill domestic demand, though refinery outages hampered production schedules. Consequently, the TBA suppliers are forced to keep their prices at lower levels.

In recent weeks, the European Commission has laid out plans to accelerate demand for electric vehicles in the corporate fleets with more focus on ending the tax breaks on petrol- or diesel-powered company cars. The TBA market has also faced challenges due to the rising adaptation of electric vehicles, which have been suppressing the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) cars.

The usage of fuels has decreased over the past few years due to the EV boom, which has had a notable impact on the TBA market. However, the electric vehicle market has faced uncertainties over rolling out new models. Makers in the European Union are hesitant due to slower uptake by the consumers. As per the latest data by the Automaker Association ACEA, the market share of EVs in Europe declined by 1.0% to 13.6% in 2024 but rose to 15% in January 2025.

As per the ChemAnalyst database, the prices of TBA are anticipated to demonstrate an inclining trend in the coming weeks due to tight supplies, expensive raw material costs, and improved consumption in the gasoline blending sector. According to an industry giant, the outlook for this year lingers on a few factors, such as conservative macro assumptions like geopolitical uncertainties and no pronounced demand recovery in the end-use markets.