Celanese Corp. (Dallas, Tex.) announced further investments to strengthen its commitment to being the world’s foremost emulsion polymers and vinyl acetate producer through facility expansions, new unit builds and key debottlenecking projects in Europe and Asia. The announced expansion plans, highlighted below, point to a growing and robust vinyls portfolio for the company’s Acetyl Chain and derivatives.
Solidifying its global vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) capabilities, Celanese is initiating a capital-efficient expansion of its VAM production unit at the company’s world-class chemical industrial park in Nanjing, China. This expansion will support the continued growth of its global acetyls business and serve the needs of customers in the Asia region and globally.
Celanese is expected to initially increase the annual VAM production capacity at its Nanjing facility by 50,000 metric tons per year (m.t./yr) to 60,000 m.t./yr, with a phased approach of up to 90,000 m.t./yr total of additional annual production capacity expected. The expanded VAM production capacity at the Nanjing facility is made possible via a novel, next-generation proprietary Celanese catalyst and advanced technology package that, when complete, is expected to increase the annual VAM nameplate capacity at the Nanjing facility from approximately 300,000 m.t./yr to nearly 400,000 m.t./yr.
Celanese is also planning for a capital efficient 10,000 m.t./yr per year expansion of acetic anhydride production at its Nanjing facility, bringing the anhydride nameplate capacity at the site to approximately 130,000 m.t./yr by 2022, allowing Celanese to support demand growth.
“Celanese is the global leader by volume in the production of vinyl acetate monomer. Based on our capital cost and the efficiency of production, we believe we have the most advanced manufacturing and technical capabilities of any producer,” said Florian Kohl, Vice President of Celanese’s Global Vinyl Chain businesses. “Celanese is best positioned for growth in the VAM market due to the company’s modern asset base as well as its flexible, cost-advantaged expansion options, combined with the ultra-low capital required of a project of this size and scope.”
Celanese is also announcing today that it plans to continue its VAE growth at the company’s Nanjing and Frankfurt facilities through the construction of two new VAE reactors, with an increase of approximately 65,000 m.t./yr of annual capacity at the Nanjing site by 2023, and an increase of approximately 45,000 m.t./yr of annual capacity at the Frankfurt site, also by 2023.
This announcement builds upon the company’s global vinyls expansion program, initiated in January 2020 to expand the emulsion polymers business in the Europe and Asia regions, which will extend the value of its global Acetyls business. Celanese is pleased to report that it is progressing well with these previously announced investment projects (in Frankfurt, Germany and Nanjing, China), which will further strengthen the company’s emulsion polymers and VAE leadership positions.
With the April 2020 acquisition of the Elotex business, Celanese further strengthened its derivative expansion program by adding a global redispersible polymer powders product line to help drive growth of VAE emulsions.