Shanghai, China – July 6, 2016 – Today BASF and Xinjiang Markor Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. (“Markor”) inaugurated a new PolyTHF® (polytetrahydrofuran, chemical name: polytetramethylene ether glycol) plant in Korla, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in northwest China. Commercial products are now available for delivery to local customers in China.
The plant, with an annual capacity of 50,000 tons of PolyTHF, is operated by a joint venture between BASF and Markor registered under the name of BASF Markor Chemical Manufacturing (Xinjiang) Co., Ltd. It will support customers’ increasing demand. The plant complements BASF’s existing Asian production facilities in Shanghai, China and Ulsan, Korea. BASF also produces PolyTHF in Geismar, Louisiana, and Ludwigshafen, Germany, with a global annual PolyTHF capacity of 350,000 metric tons.
PolyTHF is primarily used to make elastic spandex fibers for a wide variety of textiles, including swimsuits, sportswear, underwear and outerwear. It also serves as a chemical building block for thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU), used to make hoses, films and cable sheathing mainly for the automotive industry. Other applications include thermoplastic polyetheresters, polyetheramides and cast elastomers for the production of (for example) wheels for skateboards and inline skates.
In January 2016 BASF and Markor inaugurated a 1,4-butanediol (BDO) plant, also at the Korla site. The plant, with an annual capacity of 100,000 tons, is operated by another joint venture between Markor and BASF, registered under the name of Markor Meiou Chemical (Xinjiang) Co., Ltd. The two projects mark BASF’s first investment in Xinjiang with a local private enterprise.
By Martin Liedemit
Source: BASF
Neste Corporation’s Board of Directors has appointed Heikki Malinen, M.Sc. (Econ.), MBA (Harvard) as the President and CEO of Neste as of 2 November 2024, at the latest. Malinen joins Neste from Outokumpu Corporation where he has held the position of President and CEO since 2020.
Petrochemicals company Sasol has announced that CFO and executive director Hanré Rossouw will step down from his position, effective October 31. Sasol has started the process to appoint a successor. Rossouw will still oversee the publication of Sasol’s reports for the financial year ending June 30, to allow for a structured handover period.
Chemours announced its CFO Jonathan Lock has resigned from all positions within the company, according to an SEC 8-K filing on April 23. The resignation comes in the aftermath of the company announcing that Lock, former CEO Mark Newman, and principal accounting officer Camela Wisel, had been placed on administrative leave.