Expansions: Chandra Asri/Danantara to build US$800 mn chlor-alkali plant; BASF's fifth Creation Centre unveiled in South Korea
To reduce Indonesia's reliance on imports, petrochemicals and energy firm Chandra Asri has tied up with the country's sovereign wealth fund Danantara and the Indonesia Investment Authority to jointly develop a chlor-alkali ethylene dichloride (CA-EDC) plant in Cilegon city, Banten.
Danantara and INA will jointly invest about US$800 million in the project. The plant aims to boost Indonesia's production of caustic soda and EDC to strengthen industrial downstream self-sufficiency and reduce import dependency of inputs for industries such as water treatment, soap and detergent manufacturing, alumina refining and nickel processing.
In a first phase, Chandra Asri will build a plant with a production capacity of 400,000 tonnes/year of solid caustic soda (equivalent to 827,000 tonnes/year in liquid form) and 500,000 tonnes/year of EDC.
A potential second phase could expand production and introduce chlorine derivatives, depending on the outcome of ongoing feasibility studies.
The joint venture is expected to generate EDC export earnings of up to US$306 million.
In other news, German chemical firm BASF has inaugurated its fifth Creation Centre in Asia Pacific, located in Ansan, South Korea.
Designed as a collaborative space where customers can experience the power of performance materials to inspire and jointly develop cutting-edge design solutions, BASF says the centre brings together the discovery and understanding of material applications in the early stage of product design development under one roof.
It also provides an additional platform to strengthen BASF’s customer proximity and reinforces its commitment to accelerating innovation across key industries.
“With the Creation Center in Korea, we are further enhancing our position as a leading solution provider by bringing together our technical and design expertise to support customers from concept to final product,” Andy Postlethwaite, Senior Vice President, Performance Materials Asia Pacific, BASF. “This investment reflects our continued commitment to Korea as a strategic market and innovation hub for BASF in Asia.”
BASF’s Creation Centres are part of a global network designed to support customers during the early phase of product development by combining trend scouting, design thinking, and technical capabilities.
It has other centres in Ludwigshafen, Germany, Shanghai, China; Yokohama, Japan; Mumbai India, that offer customised support across industries such as mobility, consumer goods, lifestyle, and electronics.
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