Covestro breaks ground on two new production facilities in Shanghai

The groundbreaking ceremony for the new PUD plant. Photo Credit: Covestro AG

Materials manufacturer Covestro AG has broken ground on two new plants in Shanghai to meet the rising demand for polyurethane dispersions (PUDs) and elastomers.

These new facilities, which represent a combined investment of a mid-double-digit million-euro amount, will be located within the Covestro Integrated Site Shanghai.

“These projects will contribute to the high-quality and sustainable development in China and beyond,” said Holly Lei, president of Covestro China. “They will also add to the scale and strength of our Shanghai site, which will be playing a key role in the quest of Covestro to becoming operational climate neutral by 2035.”

The new facility for polyurethane elastomers, which are widely used in industries ranging from offshore wind to solar energy as well as material handling, is expected to become operational already in 2023. The market for these flexible and durable materials in China and the Asia-Pacific region is growing faster than both gross domestic product and downstream industries.

“The new facility for polyurethane elastomers will ensure that we have a strong capacity to meet the needs of our customers,” said Simon Chen, head of Covestro’s elastomers segment in Asia Pacific. “Our Desmodur- based polyurethane elastomers will serve a wider range of applications as they boast excellent performance, particularly in the field of sustainable energy.”

Since 2001, Covestro says has invested 3.6 billion euro into building the Shanghai integrated site, which comprises 11 plants and is the company’s largest site in the world. In the past year, the Shanghai site obtained the ISCC PLUS mass balance certification, meaning it can supply customers with larger product volumes from renewably attributed raw materials.