SINGAPORE, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Lanxess AG, the German chemical manufacturer spun off from Bayer AG, said on Tuesday that it will invest 400 million euro to build a rubber plant in Singapore.
The new chemical facility for synthetic rubber, located at the chemical park on Jurong Island, is due to begin construction in 2009 and will be completed by the end of 2010, Chief Executive Axel Heitmann announced at a press conference here.
From 2011, the new plant will produce up to 100,000 tons of butyl rubber annually that are used in the production of tires, making it the largest facility of its type in Asia.
"By setting up this new location in Singapore, Lanxess is responding to the significant growth in global demand for butyl rubber," said Heitmann.
The global market for butyl rubber will rise steadily in the coming years, especially in China and India. The demand from China will grow 6 percent annually and that India more than 8 percent, according to Lanxess.
The single largest investment of Lanxess was also a nice shot in the arm for Singapore's chemical industry, said Aw Kah Peng, official of Singapore Economic Development Board.
Lanxess' high value-added project is "a superb demonstration" of Singapore's strategic intent to extend its higher olefins chemistry chains, she said.
The output from the chemicals cluster now stands at 82 billion Singapore dollars (about 58 billion U.S. dollars), surpassing electronics as the largest contributor to Singapore's manufacturing output at nearly 34 percent, according to Aw.
Singapore attracted Exxon Mobil and Shell to build petroleum crackers here last year.
The new chemical facility for synthetic rubber, located at the chemical park on Jurong Island, is due to begin construction in 2009 and will be completed by the end of 2010, Chief Executive Axel Heitmann announced at a press conference here.
From 2011, the new plant will produce up to 100,000 tons of butyl rubber annually that are used in the production of tires, making it the largest facility of its type in Asia.
"By setting up this new location in Singapore, Lanxess is responding to the significant growth in global demand for butyl rubber," said Heitmann.
The global market for butyl rubber will rise steadily in the coming years, especially in China and India. The demand from China will grow 6 percent annually and that India more than 8 percent, according to Lanxess.
The single largest investment of Lanxess was also a nice shot in the arm for Singapore's chemical industry, said Aw Kah Peng, official of Singapore Economic Development Board.
Lanxess' high value-added project is "a superb demonstration" of Singapore's strategic intent to extend its higher olefins chemistry chains, she said.
The output from the chemicals cluster now stands at 82 billion Singapore dollars (about 58 billion U.S. dollars), surpassing electronics as the largest contributor to Singapore's manufacturing output at nearly 34 percent, according to Aw.
Singapore attracted Exxon Mobil and Shell to build petroleum crackers here last year.
