Linde Strengthens North American Anhydrous Hydrogen Chloride Supply Network

Murray Hill, NJ - The Linde Group is making a series of investments and capital upgrades to strengthen its North American subsidiaries' anhydrous hydrogen chloride (HCL) supply network.

Linde offers electronics customers around the world an extensive selection of high purity gases, related products, services and technical solutions from research and development through to large-scale production.

Anhydrous HCL is a key chemical for manufacturing processes ranging from semiconductors to pharmaceuticals and cotton fabric. Linde is investing in its U.S. business in order to improve quality and supply reliability for customers. Linde will upgrade two facilities in Lovington, N.M. and Phoenix, Ariz. and has entered into an agreement to purchase high purity anhydrous HCL from a new manufacturer in Baytown, Texas.

"Linde will continue strengthening its infrastructure in order to meet growing demand for high purity HCL and to get customers the quality and quantity they need," said Peter Thomas, head of sales and marketing North America for Linde Electronics, the global electronic gases business of The Linde Group.

The new Texas source is expected to come online in May 2008. HCL from Texas will be railed to Linde's Lovington facility, for further purification using the latest in analytical and automation technology. The new technology, installed earlier this year, ensures precise moisture analysis. The HCL is then repackaged into tube trailers and iso-containers for delivery to customers throughout the U.S., Canada and Caribbean.

HCL from Lovington is trucked to Linde's Phoenix plant for repackaging into cylinders and ton containers. An expansion project underway in Phoenix will increase plant capacity by 35 percent, enabling Linde to fill, store and ship over 3,000 additional cylinders to customers. That project is expected to be completed this January.

SOURCE: The Linde Group