German chemical company BASF is adding 10,000 metric tons to its annual capacity for neopentylglycol (NPG) at its Verbund site in Ludwigshafen. This will raise its global annual NPG capacity to 155,000 metric tons by the end of 2007. The company has attributed the capacity increase to a growing demand for the intermediate, mainly in coatings applications. NPG is an essential component for eco-efficient powder coating resins and is also used for unsaturated polyester and alkyd resins, which serve as binders in a variety of liquid coatings. Among other applications, intermediates are used as starting materials for textile fibres, coatings and plastics.
The company has also announced that it has raised its prices for formic acid and 2-ethylhexanoic acid. Effective immediately, or as existing contracts permit, prices will increase by €40 per metric ton in Europe. 2-Ethylhexanoic acid is used for many different industrial applications such as the manufacture of plasticisers, PVC stabilisers, lubricants and drying additives for coatings.
