MOSCOW (MRC) -- Huntsman officially inaugurated its new 22,000 tonne/year aromatic polyester polyols plant in Kuan Yin, Taiwan, said the company.
The 3,600-square meter polyols plant, completed in May, expands Huntsman’s downstream polyurethanes capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region and marks the first time Huntsman has manufactured its TEROL polyols outside the United States.
TEROL polyester polyols are critical components in the production of MDI-based polyurethane insulation systems – the most effective insulants available in the market, as measured by R-value. Insulation products based on TEROL® polyols, include polyisocyanurate (PIR) boardstock systems, spray polyurethane foam (SPF) and pour-in-place applications, including entry doors, garage doors, coolers, refrigerators and commercial freezers.
To produce its TEROL polyols, Huntsman utilizes a proprietary process that upcycles scrap polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, some of which otherwise would have ended up in landfills, rivers and oceans.
In remarks at the opening ceremony, Peter Huntsman, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Huntsman Corporation, said: “The work we are doing in Taiwan and throughout the Asia Pacific region will truly transform our industry. By recycling the equivalent of nearly half a billion PET bottles from the oceans, landfills and refuse facilities, we are creating the building blocks that transform plastic waste into something of real value – highly efficient insulants that help conserve energy and reduce emissions.
Huntsman manufactures TEROL polyols for the Americas and European regions from its plant in Houston, Texas, where it upcycles the equivalent of one billion 500ml PET bottles per year. Additionally, Huntsman manufactures polyols from scrap PET bottles at its Huntsman Building Solutions site in Boisbriand, Canada.
Commenting on the new facility, Tony Hankins, President of Huntsman’s Polyurethanes business and CEO of Asia Pacific said: “Taiwan is a critically important base for the achievement of our strategic objectives in the region, which are focused on moving downstream and creating more differentiated solutions for our customers. The TEROL polyols from this plant are already being used in PIR boardstock systems, cold chain applications and spray polyurethane foam, or SPF. Earlier this year, we established Huntsman Building Solutions, the leading SPF company in the world, through the integration of two major SPF businesses that we recently acquired. As a result, Huntsman is now able to effectively supply energy-efficient SPF systems to customers throughout Asia-Pacific, leveraging the TEROL® polyols from the Taiwan plant. We see significant growth opportunities for SPF in the cold chain, modern agriculture, and the insulation of buildings."
As MRC informed earlier, Nanjing Jinling Huntsman, a joint venture between Huntsman and Sinopec Jinling, plans to close the propylene oxide plant in Nanjing (Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China) on November 1 for scheduled maintenance. This plant with a capacity of 240,000 tonnes/year of propylene oxide will be closed until approximately 25 November.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, overall PP production in Russia increased in January-July 2020 by 24% year on year to 1,063,700 tonne. ZapSibNeftekhim accounted for the main increase in the output.
Huntsman Corporation is a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals with 2019 revenues of approximately $7 billion. Our chemical products number in the thousands and are sold worldwide to manufacturers serving a broad and diverse range of consumer and industrial end markets. We operate more than 70 manufacturing, R&D and operations facilities in approximately 30 countries and employ approximately 9,000 associates within our four distinct business divisions.
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