Rain Carbon, a leading US-based producer of carbon products and advanced materials, has announced that it will close its resins plant in Uithoorn, the Netherlands, by the end of March 2020. The plant is operated by subsidiary Rütgers Resins.

President Gerry Sweeney said the decision by the board of directors was made in light of eroding profitability for hydrocarbon and C₉ aromatic resins, particularly for printing inks and adhesives. He added that after an intensive evaluation of available options over the past few quarters, it became clear that continued operation of the plant was not feasible.

“Increased competition from low-cost resins produced in Asia and the development of alternative products and technologies are reducing demand for the resins produced at Uithoorn,” said Sweeney.

Rain Carbon said it is committed to meeting customer requirements for hydrocarbon and C9 aromatic resins from the plant through August 2020. Separately, it has reached agreement with the affected work counsels on a responsible social plan for the 60 employees affected by the Uithoorn closure.

The company is also developing plans to help customers transition to resins produced at its new hydrogenated hydrocarbon resin plant in Castrop-Rauxel, Germany, as well at its facility in Duisburg, Germany, where a $10 million modernization project is underway. The Castrop-Rauxel plant, which Rain Carbon announced it would build in July 2018, has a resins capacity of up to 50,000 t/y.