Lanxess adds capacity for BR, S-SBR in Orange

ERJ staff report (DS)

Leverkusen, Germany - Lanxess is adding a total of 35,000 metric tons per year capacity at its butadiene / S-SBR plant in Orange, Texas. The expansion is made up of 20kt of new capacity and 15kt of previously-announced de-bottlenecking.

The new reactor line for solution styrene butadiene (SSBR) and neodymium-catalysed polybutadiene (Nd-BR) rubbers has nominal capacity of 20 000 tonnes per year. This will be on stream by the third quarter of 2012. The expansion represents a EUR 10 million investment.

A further 15 000 tonnes of capacity comes from a previously-announced de-bottlenecking project at Orange, which is now complete. That project was first announced in March 2010 and is part of a investment totaling EUR 20 million to increase production of Nd-BR by 50,000 metric tons per annum in Orange, Germany's Dormagen and Brazil's Cabo. The additional capacities in Germany and Brazil will be fully operational by the first quarter of 2012. Theses expansions will also lead to an indirect increase in S-SBR capacities at the company's site in Port Jérôme, France.

“Our capacitiy expansions mirror the strong demand from our customers for innovative and premium high-performance rubber,” said Joachim Grub, Head of the Performance Butadiene Rubbers business.

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Press release from Lanxess