BASF-YPC Co., a BASF and SINOPEC 50-50 JV has announced plan to expand production of Neopentylglycol (NPG) at Verbund site in Nanjing, China. Following the expansion, the annual capacity will double to 80,000 metric tons from the current 40,000 metric tons. The expanded capacity will come on stream in 2020.

“With this increased capacity, we will support the fast-growing customer demand for high-quality NPG in China and the Asia Pacific region. The expansion is also in line with the trend towards environmentally friendly powder coatings with low volatile organic compounds, or VOCs,” said Narayan Krishnamohan, Senior Vice President, BASF Intermediates Asia Pacific.

NPG is a unique polyalcohol offering superior performance in many end-use applications such as powder coatings, textiles and construction due to its high chemical and thermal stability. It is mainly used as a building block in polyester resins for coatings, unsaturated polyester and alkyd resins, lubricants and plasticizers.