WACKER to Build New Production Facilities for Dispersions and Polymer Powders in South Korea

29-Sep-2017 - Korea, Republic of (South Korea)

Wacker Chemie AG is expanding its existing production plants for polymer binders in South Korea. The Munich-based chemical company plans to build a new spray dryer for dispersible polymer powders at its Ulsan site. The dryer will have a total capacity of 80,000 metric tons per year. WACKER also plans to build a further reactor for dispersions based on vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymer (VAE). Its dispersions will be used in the spray dryer for the production of dispersible polymer powders. Thanks to the new reactor, Ulsan’s VAE dispersion capacity will more than double. Ulsan’s plant complex, which covers the entire product chain from VAE dispersions to dispersible polymer powders, will be one of the largest of its kind worldwide. Capital expenditures of around €60 million are budgeted for the capacity increase and for expanding local infrastructure. Scheduled to start before the end of the year, construction work is expected to be finished by Q1 2019.

“Our investment in expanding our polymer-binder production facilities in Ulsan is a key step in our global growth strategy,” said Rudolf Staudigl, CEO of Wacker Chemie AG. “The additional capacity will strengthen our market position the world’s leading manufacturer of dispersions and dispersible polymer powders, and will help us meet our Asian customers’ continuously rising demand over the long term,” he emphasized.

https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/165065/wacker-to-build-new-production-facilities-for-dispersions-and-polymer-powders-in-south-korea.html