Bayer MaterialScience increases MDI capacity
PITTSBURGH, Jan. 12, 2004 — Bayer MaterialScience*, a subgroup of Bayer AG, plans to increase capacity for the polyurethane raw material MDI (diphenyl methane diisocyanate) at its sites in Tarragona, Spain, and Baytown, Texas. The production of aniline – a base product for the manufacture of MDI – in Antwerp, Belgium, is to be expanded at the same time.
Bayer MaterialScience is the world's leading manufacturer of polyurethane raw materials. The company currently has a global MDI capacity of around 800,000 tons/year and plans to increase this by 120,000 tons to a total of some 920,000 tons/year by 2006. Bayer currently produces MDI at seven sites throughout the world. An eighth facility at Caojing, Shanghai (China), is in the final planning stage.
In Baytown, the company plans to expand its MDI capacity from its present level of 230,000 tons/year to 300,000 tons/year. Annual MDI capacity in Tarragona is also scheduled to increase from 100,000 to 150,000 tons by 2006. This will necessitate an expansion in aniline production at the Antwerp site in Belgium over the same period.
In addition to these expansions, Bayer MaterialScience also recently announced plans to add MDI capacity in Caojing, China, in two stages. Work is due to begin shortly on the construction of a facility for the production of polymeric and monomeric MDI from crude MDI, which should be completed by 2006. Production start-up for MDI is scheduled for 2008 with an annual capacity of 230,000 tons.
"We expect the MDI market to grow at around 6 percent a year – twice the rate of the global GDP," said Peter Vanacker, designated head of the Polyurethanes Business Unit of Bayer MaterialScience. "These expansions in MDI capacity will allow us to maintain our global leadership in this important product area and support our long-term goal of remaining the preferred supplier of MDI raw materials for our customers throughout the world."
MDI is an important chemical constituent in the production of polyurethane foams and elastomers. Rigid foams, for example, are used in the manufacture of refrigerator and freezer cabinets, as thermal insulation in the construction industry and in district heating systems. Elastomers find application in the footwear, automotive and electronic industries.
For more information on MDI, contact Bayer MaterialScience at 1-800-662-2927 or visit www.BayerPolymers.com.
With 23,000 employees at 120 sites around the world and 2002 sales of 10.8 billion euros, Bayer Polymers is a leader in the global industry of performance polymers. The company's materials and solutions are the backbone of modern life, serving primarily the automotive, construction, information technology, appliance, furniture as well as sports and leisure industries. As a member of the global Bayer Group, Bayer Polymers benefits from a wealth of resources while enjoying the flexibility to focus on its primary objective: to be the partner of choice in polymer materials.
Bayer Corporation, headquartered in Pittsburgh, is the U.S. holding company of the worldwide Bayer Group, an international health care and chemicals group based in Leverkusen, Germany. Bayer employs 24,600 in North America with net North American sales of 8.9 billion euros in 2002. Bayer's four operating business areas – HealthCare, CropScience, Polymers and Chemicals – produce a broad range of products that help diagnose and treat diseases, purify water, preserve local landmarks, protect crops, advance automobile safety and durability and improve people's lives.
The Bayer Group has nearly 118,600 employees. Its stock is a component of the DAX and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol: BAY). For 2002, the Group recorded sales of 29.6 billion euros and a group net profit of 1.1 billion euros. Capital expenditures totaled 2.4 billion euros, and 2.6 billion euros was invested in research and development.