Chemical company BASF has announced that it will open a plant for the production of Ultrason polyethersulfone in Yeosu, Korea.
This will be the first such plant for the company outside Germany. The plant is expected to have a capacity of 6,000 Mt/year and will create a large number of jobs upon being fully operational. Construction of the plant is likely to commence during the beginning of 2012 and production is likely to begin by early 2014.
BASF intends to invest around €2.3 billion over the next five years in order to achieve 70% its sales in the Asia Pacific region. The site in Yeosu, Korea was chosen because it already contains the necessary infrastructure and the ideal workforce that is required for such a plant. Ultrason plastic is presently manufactured only in Germany at the Ludwigshafen site. Ultrason plastic has the capacity to withstand temperatures of up to 220˚C without any change in its properties and chemical stability. The plastic is supplied for applications in the electronics, aerospace and water treatment industries. Specific applications include microwave proof dishes, baby bottles, espresso machines, medical device membranes, food contact and hot water parts. The material is also used to produce carbon fibre composite materials.
According to Dr. Albert Heuser who is the President for Market and Business Development for Asia Pacific at BASF, the development of the plant will enable the company to support local businesses and the location of the plant in Korea is beneficial since it is close to other markets such as Japan and China.