Basell: New plants in Germany and Saudi Arabia
Basell is expanding its PE and PP capacity with two new plants, for HDPE in Germany and in a PP joint venture in Saudi Arabia. The new plant at Wesseling in Germany will make 320,000 tonnes/year of HDPE for pipe extrusion using Basell’s Advanced Cascade Process extension of the Hostalen slurry technology. Construction starts in October for start-up in the fourth quarter of 2003. Grades of black, blue and orange-yellow will be produced for water, sewage and gas distribution pressure pipe. Basell puts a figure of 5,5 per cent on the annual growth of the Western European pipe market.
The Saudi Arabian project is a joint venture with the National Petrochemical Industrialization Company and will be called Saudi Polyolefins Company. NPIC will hold 75 per cent of the equity and Basell the remainder. The 450,000 tonnes plant will be built at Al-Jaubail and will produce homopolymers and random copolymers using the Novolen gas phase process. An associated 450,000 tonnes hydrogenation unit for converting propane into propylene will use the ABB Lummus Global Catofin technology. PP from the plant will be sold both domestically and internationally.