According to a statement made by the Huntsman Corporation, Huntsman, BASF and a group of Chinese companies - Shanghai Hua Yi (Group Company), Sinopec Shanghai Gao Qiao Petrochemical Corporation and Shanghai Chloro-Alkali Chemical Co. Ltd - are considering the construction of a new MDI (diphenylmethane diisocyanate) plant in China to meet growing demand for this product. Several sites for the plant are being evaluated. The start-up is planned from 2010 onward, and the plant is expected to have a capacity of 400,000 metric tons per year of crude MDI, to be sold and marketed separately by Huntsman and BASF.

"The market for polyurethanes in China is growing at double-digit rates and this is expected to continue well into the next decade," said Tony Hankins, president of Huntsman's Polyurethanes division.

MDI is an important precursor in the manufacture of polyurethanes - versatile polymers that are used for footwear.

As part of Huntsman's investment strategy for the Chinese market, an integrated isocyanates complex is currently under construction at the Shanghai Chemical Industry Park in Caojing. This project is expected to begin commercial production by mid-2006 and is also a joint venture between Huntsman, BASF and the same group of Chinese companies. It will have a capacity of 240,000 metric tons per year of crude MDI. The total cost for the complex is about $1 billion.