Lanxess has inaugurated its new butyl rubber plant on Jurong Island in Singapore on schedule. The specialty chemicals company has invested approximately €400 million in the plant, which will have a capacity of 100,000 metric tons. The plant will create about 160 highly qualified new jobs that will mainly be filled locally. The facility is the most modern of its kind in Asia and will produce premium halobutyl rubber, as well as regular butyl rubber.

The newly opened plant in Singapore joins existing butyl rubber plants in Sarnia, Canada, and Zwijndrecht, Belgium. The butyl rubber facility in Singapore went into operation in the first quarter of 2013 and is being ramped up gradually. Commercial production will start in the third quarter of this year. The facility is expected to achieve full capacity in 2015.

Lanxess also started construction of a new production facility for neodymium-based performance butadiene rubber (Nd-PBR) on Jurong Island last year. The direct proximity of these two plants creates valuable synergies for the company, for example through joint infrastructure and logistics.

Lanxess currently employs around 380 people in Singapore, which is an important hub for the company in Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region. Singapore has been home to the global headquarters of the Butyl Rubber business unit since 2010.

The butyl rubber market is expected to grow on average by 5% in the coming years, with the main driving force being the megatrend mobility, above all in Asia. The tire industry accounts for around three-quarters of sales at Lanxess' butyl rubber business unit and more than 50% of sales is generated in Asia.