Inovyn, the vinyls producer now wholly owned by Ineos, has decided to invest in a new cellroom at Cologne, Germany to produce chlorine and caustic soda. Chlorine output will be sold mainly to sister company Ineos Oxide, while caustic soda output will be sold on the open market.

The company, formerly a joint venture between Ineos and Solvay, said initial design and feasibility studies are under way, with completion expected for 2021.  

The investment is part of Inovyn’s chlor-alkali investment program, which has already led to what the company describes as a “well advanced” membrane cellroom conversion at Stenungsund, Sweden, as well as the recently completed expansion of its membrane chlorine cellroom at Antwerp/Lillo in Belgium and a large-scale potassium hydroxide (KOH) production facility at the same site.

Inovyn also has a membrane-based production portfolio at its European sites in France, Italy, Norway and the UK. The Cologne project will underpin the sustainability and competitiveness of the company’s business in the long term, said CEO Chris Tane.

Separately, the vinyls producer said it recently completed its new import facility for ethylene dichloride (EDC) at Martorell, Spain, west of Barcelona. This, it said, will guarantee an uninterrupted supply of the chemical to the site, which is having to close its membrane cellroom to comply with the EU’s Industrial Emissions Directive.

By importing the vinyls starting material through the port of Barcelona, the site’s PVC and VCM production can be maintained at current rates beyond the end of 2017, Inovyn said.

Inovyn added that it “continues to evaluate the competitiveness of a cellroom conversion project” at Martorell.

At the same time, business director, Filipe Constant, said management continues to evaluate the competitiveness of a potential cellroom conversion project at Martorell. A decision to invest, he said, will in part be contingent on the cost of raw materials. A dialog with Spanish authorities about the subject is ongoing.

Constant said a cellroom conversion would be “highly beneficial” in securing a domestic supply of caustic soda, hydrochloric acid and sodium hypochlorite to the Spanish site.