Wacker Chemie and Dow Corning have officially inaugurated the completed second phase of their joint pyrogenic silica plant in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province, China. The pyrogenic silica plant, together with a siloxane plant, is a key facility of the Dow Corning-Wacker integrated silicone manufacturing site developed by both companies at Jiangsu Yangtze River Chemical Industrial Park in Zhangjiagang to produce materials used extensively in industries including construction, beauty and personal care, power and automotives. Covering an area of one million m², the combined $ 1.8 billion investment is China's largest facility of this kind and among the world's largest and most advanced integrated production complexes for silicones.

The combined capacity for siloxane and pyrogenic silica at the site, including the second phase silica plant, is expected to reach approximately 210,000 metric tons per year. Investments from both partners for the new pyrogenic silica production facility amount to a mid double-digit million euro sum.

Pyrogenic silica and siloxane are key ingredients in the manufacture of finished silicone products. Silicone-based materials are used in nearly all sectors of China's booming economy, including automotive, construction, cosmetics and personal care products, electronics, power generation and distribution, solar energy and textiles.