KUANTAN, Malaysia/LUDWIGSHAFEN, Germany – BASF and PETRONAS Chemicals Group Berhad (PCG) will build a new world-scale production plant for 2-ethylhexanoic acid (2-EHAcid) at the site of their existing joint venture, BASF PETRONAS Chemicals, in Kuantan, Malaysia. The construction of this plant, which will be the first of its kind in the ASEAN region, is expected to start in the second quarter of 2015. The plant, with a total annual capacity of 30,000 metric tons of 2-EHAcid, is expected to start production in the fourth quarter of 2016. The new plant will benefit from backward integration into the site, allowing high delivery reliability and maximizing efficient use of energy and feedstock.

“With this new plant, we are responding to our customers’ growing demands in Asia-Pacific. Through this additional capacity, BASF will become one of the leading suppliers for high-purity 2-EHAcid in the region,” said Stefan Blank, President, BASF Intermediates division. “This investment further strengthens BASF’s offering in various downstream markets across a broad range of applications.”