The 30,000 t/y capacity addition is due to be in place by the first quarter of 2023. Together with existing facilities in Changzhou and Wuxi, the expansion will bring the company’s total compounding capacity in China for the engineering plastics to 110,000 t/y.

Lanxess said the capacity upgrade comes in response to the strong demand it is experiencing from the booming Chinese e-mobility sector. To stay ahead of the new requirements for lightweight applications, the share of electronic components used by automakers is continuously increasing, said managing board member Hubert Fink.

The engineering plastics producer regards e-mobility as a major demand driver for its PA 6 and PA 6.6 compounds, as well as for its PBT compounds and the endless fiber-reinforced composites Tepex. Lanxess already makes a range of products that meet the most challenging standards and norms of the electrical and electronics industry such as of flame retardance, electrical properties and ecological behavior, Fink noted. 

Earlier this month, Lanxess announced plans to spin off its High Performance Materials business – including engineering plastics – into an independent legal entity from January 2022, saying it believes the largely back-integrated business would have the best growth opportunities in a new structure. It provided no insight into whether a sale or joint venture is the preferred option, only saying cryptically that, “the global market for new forms of mobility is developing very dynamically and is strategically rearranging itself, creating many innovative alliances and partnerships.”

Author: Dede Williams, Freelance Journalist