BASF announced that it will build a single-train 300,000 metric tons per year production plant for toluene diisocyanate (TDI), a key component mainly used for flexible polyurethane foams, and expand additional plants for its precursors at its site in Ludwigshafen, Germany. These include the construction of a new hydrogen chloride recycling plant, the expansion of plants for nitric acid, chlorine and synthesis gas, and the expansion of the aromatics complex for the supply of toluene.
Total investment including the required infrastructure will be about €1 billion and create around 200 additional jobs. Production will start at the end of 2014. BASF plans to close down its 80,000 metric tons per year TDI production plant in Schwarzheide, Germany, when the new plant goes on stream.
The company also announced that it will move the headquarters of BASF Plant Science from Limburgerhof, close to Ludwigshafen, to Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. BASF is convinced that plant biotechnology is a key technology for the 21st century, but it is still gaining acceptance in many parts of Europe – from the majority of consumers, farmers, and politicians. This means a reduction of 140 positions in Europe.
- BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany
