On February 5th, Haryono Lim, President of BASF Group's Asia Large Projects, stated at the Guangdong Province High-Quality Development Conference sub-forum that the core facilities of BASF's Zhanjiang integrated base are steadily advancing construction and are scheduled to start production by the end of 2025. This is an important milestone for BASF’s investment in China and also reflects the speed of development in Guangdong.
The core facilities of BASF’s Zhanjiang Integrated Base include a steam cracker unit with an annual capacity of 1 million tons of ethylene, as well as several downstream units. Products will cover industries such as automotive, construction, high-speed rail, electronics, food packaging, personal care, aerospace, and pharmaceuticals.
Additionally, the construction includes 66/83/20 thousand tons per year of ethylene oxide/ethylene glycol/refined ethylene oxide units, 21.5 thousand tons per year of non-ionic surfactant units, 500 thousand tons per year of polyethylene units, 2×190 thousand tons per year of isopropyl alcohol units, 375 thousand tons per year of butyl acrylate units, 100 thousand tons per year of iso-octyl acrylate units, 500 thousand tons per year of butanol units, 50 thousand standard cubic meters/hour of syngas units, 80 thousand tons per year (in equivalent) of neopentyl glycol units, 110 thousand tons per year of formaldehyde units, and 40 thousand tons per year of citronellal units, along with supporting utilities and auxiliary facilities. The project will use naphtha, normal butane, and other raw materials to produce ethylene, propylene, benzene, toluene, xylene, cracked fuel oil, isobutene, and downstream products.
Previously, BASF expressed strong confidence in the Chinese market. While there are challenges in the short term, the long-term growth potential in China is enormous. In the next decade, three-quarters of BASF’s capacity will come from China.
In addition to the Zhanjiang Integrated Base, BASF has established multiple production bases in cities such as Shanghai, Nanjing, and Chongqing. Among them, the Shanghai Innovation Park is BASF's research and development hub for the Asia-Pacific region. Specifically:
1. BASF Zhanjiang Integrated Base (Under Construction)
This base was announced in July 2018 and officially launched in November 2019. It is BASF's largest single investment project to date, with a total investment of approximately 10 billion euros and is being independently constructed and operated by BASF. Once completed, it will become BASF's third-largest production base globally, second only to the Ludwigshafen site in Germany and the Antwerp site in Belgium.
The first production unit was announced to start operations in September 2022, and the second production unit for thermoplastic polyurethane production officially started in January 2024, meeting the demands of customers in several growing industries in South China and the entire Asian market.
BASF Integrated Base (Guangdong) Co., Ltd. was established in 2019 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of BASF Group, responsible for the operation of the Zhanjiang integrated base.
This integrated base combines global, Asia-Pacific, and local research and development, production, marketing, and functional departments.
The base was established in 1994 as a joint venture between BASF and Shanghai Chemical Dye Company; in 2000, it became a BASF wholly-owned company; in 2004, it became BASF's Greater China headquarters; operations started in 2012; in 2012, BASF Shanghai Innovation Park was completed, and in 2015, phase two expansion was finished. Phase three was completed in 2023. As of the end of 2023, nine production units and one wastewater treatment unit were operational.
Products include: Ultramid? (Polyamide, PA), Ultradur? (Polybutylene Terephthalate, PBT), polyurethane compounds, Elastollan? thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), Cellasto? microcellular polyurethane elastomers, acrylic dispersions, polymer colorants, cleaners, metal-complex dyes, leather auxiliaries, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), 3D printing materials, automotive emission catalysts, and more.
This major production base houses one wholly-owned company and three joint ventures.
The base was established in 2002, and the first production facility, a PolyTHF? (tetrahydrofuran) joint unit, was completed in 2005. In 2006, TDI/MDI commercial production began. By the end of 2023, 16 production units were operational.
Companies include BASF Chemical Ltd. (wholly-owned); BASF Shanghai Coatings Ltd. (a joint venture between BASF and Shanghai Huayi Fine Chemical Co., Ltd.); Shanghai BASF Polyurethane Co., Ltd. (a joint venture between BASF, Shanghai Huayi, and Gaoqiao Petrochemical); Shanghai Lianheng Isocyanate Co., Ltd. (a joint venture between BASF and several partners).
Products include: PolyTHF? (tetrahydrofuran), Toluene Diisocyanate (TDI), Methylenediphenyl Diisocyanate (MDI), Basonat? (Polyisocyanate), precious metal salts and solutions, automotive coatings, resins, electrophoretic coatings, polyamide polymers, process catalysts, antioxidants, and more.
This integrated production base is a 50:50 joint investment between BASF Group and Sinopec.
The base was established in 2000 as Yangzi Petrochemical-BASF Co., Ltd.; commercial operations began in 2005; phase two was completed in 2012; phase 2.8 was completed in 2023. By the end of 2023, 38 production units were in operation.
Products include: low-density polyethylene, ethylene-vinyl acetate, ethylene glycol, polystyrene, acrylic acid and esters, non-ionic surfactants, superabsorbent polymers, n-butanol, isobutanol, 2-propyl-heptanol, butadiene, polyisobutene, and more.
On August 30, 2024, the Yangzi-Yangba light hydrocarbon comprehensive utilization project was grandly launched. The project, built and operated by Nanjing Yangzi-Yangba Olefins Co., Ltd., is invested at 9.142 billion yuan and includes the construction of a 1 million ton per year ethylene steam cracker, a 500 thousand ton per year gasoline hydrotreatment unit, a 620 thousand ton per year aromatics extraction unit, and supporting facilities. The ethylene and propylene produced will be used for downstream projects at Yangzi Petrochemical and Yangba Company's phase three project.
This wholly-owned BASF production base produces water treatment monomers, amine products, and additives for coatings.
In 2009, it became a wholly-owned BASF production base; in 2011, it was renamed BASF Specialty Chemicals (Nanjing) Co., Ltd. As of the end of 2023, nine production units were in operation.
Products include: acrylamide, quaternary ammonium compounds, anionic flocculants, cationic flocculants, tert-butylamine, N,N-dimethyl-1,3-propanediamine, polyetheramine, n-octylamine, 1,2-propanediamine, new additives for paints, inks, coatings, and adhesives, and more.
This is BASF's wholly-owned production base for Methylene Diphenyl Diisocyanate (MDI).
The base started MDI production in 2015, and a new natural gas synthesis gas project was completed in 2018.
The main product is Methylene Diphenyl Diisocyanate (MDI). Notably, on December 19, 2024, the BASF Chongqing Polyurethane MDI optimization project entered trial operation, with an annual capacity of 530,000 tons.
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