On 21 November 2023, Ineos Styrolution (Frankfurt, Germany; www.ineos-styrolution.com) announced the official opening of its new, large-scale ABS plant in Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. The plant, a joint venture with Chinese petrochemical group Sinopec (Beijing; www.sinopecgroup.com), has a capacity of 600,000 t/y. It utilises the Terluran technology from Ineos Styrolution, covers an area of 26.7 hectares, and provides work for more than 360 people. 

Construction of the plant took just under three years. Production is primarily intended to meet the growing demand in China, particularly in the automotive, E&E, household appliances, healthcare, and consumer goods markets. Ineos Styrolution operates 16 plants in nine countries; with almost 3,100 employees, the Ineos subsidiary reported sales of EUR 6.6 bn in 2022. 

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According to Plasteurope.com’s Polyglobe database (www.polyglobe.net), ABS capacity in China is now more than 6.5 mn t/y, or almost 46.5% of available global output, and further production facilities are under construction. Even though manufacturing at the new plant is primarily intended for the Chinese market, it is still likely to have an impact on Europe as China will probably have to import less ABS in the future, meaning manufacturers from South Korea and Taiwan may try to sell their material in other markets to an even greater extent than before.