Petronas Chemicals, BASF to jointly build 2-EHAcid plant in Kuantan

PETALING JAYA: Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd (PCG) has teamed up with German chemical producer, BASF SE to jointly build a new production plant for 2-Ethylhexanoic Acid (2-EHAcid) at the site of their existing joint venture, BASF Petronas Chemicals Sdn Bhd in Kuantan, Pahang.
The plant is expected to start its production in the fourth quarter of 2016, with a total annual capacity of 30,000 metric tons of 2-EHAcid. Construction on the project will start in the second quarter of this year.
BASF and PCG said in a joint statement yesterday that the plant will benefit from backward integration into the site, allowing high delivery reliability and maximising efficient use of energy and feedstock.
"With this project, Petronas and BASF are fully utilizing our combined strengths in the areas of skill resources, technology and overall molecules integration thus further optimising the value chains," PCG's president and CEO Datuk Sazali Hamzah said in the statement.
"With this new plant, we are responding to our customers' growing demands in Asia Pacific. Through this additional capacity BASF will become one of the leading suppliers for high purity 2-EHAcid in the region," BASF Intermediates division's president Stefan Blank added.
The 2-EHAcid is a chemical intermediate used as a compound, such as in the production of synthetic lubricants, as well as oil additives. It is also used for functional fluids like automotive coolants, metal salts for paint dryers, plasticizers, stabilizers, catalysts and other applications in various industries.
In addition to the proposed plant, BASF Petronas Chemicals is also building an integrated aroma ingredients complex at its Kuantan site for the manufacturing of citronellol, L-menthol as well as citral and its precursors which are widely used in flavour and fragrance industry.
Groundbreaking for the US$500 million integrated aroma ingredients complex was done in April 2014, and the first plant is scheduled to come on-stream in 2016.
BASF Petronas Chemicals which was founded in 1997 currently operates an integrated complex situated at the Gebeng Industrial Zone, Pahang.
BASF currently operates a 2-EHAacid production plant at its Verbund system site in Ludwigshafen, Germany.