Polyplex Thailand, a Bangkok-based subsidiary of Indian BOPET producer Polyplex (PTL, Noida, Uttar Pradesh; www.polyplex.com), announced the startup of a 60,000 t/y biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film plant in Serang / Indonesia. This complements a BOPET line at the site, which has been in operation since 2019 with a production capacity of 44,000 t/y.

In June 2019, the Polyplex subsidiary had announced a USD 48m investment for the construction of the plant, to be commissioned in 2021-2022 (see Plasteurope.com of 16.10.2020). Polyplex’s startup of the 10.6 m-wide BOPP film line strengthens its participation as a supplier of flexible packaging in the fast-growing Southeast Asian market.

The company also said its US investment to expand BOPET film and resin capacity is underway at the Decatur site in the state of Alabama, and is expected to start up in early 2023. There, the film producer is investing around USD 100m (EUR 88m) in an additional line with a capacity of 50,000 t/y. The current capacity in Decatur is 31,000 t/y.

According to its own information, Polyplex is the world’s sixth-largest supplier of PET film with a current total capacity of 258,000 t/y. However, the product portfolio also includes BOPP and PP cast films, whose production volume currently amounts to 95,000 t/y and 10,000 t/y respectively.