Bayer MaterialScience has temporarily cancelled plans to close its 160,000 t/y TDI plant at Brunsbüttel / Germany by the end of 2014. The Bayer sub-group said strong demand from the bedding and upholstery sectors – in particular automotive seating – requires that production be kept running.
BMS initially said it would close the plant parallel to the start-up of the new 300,000 t/y gas-phase TDI plant at Dormagen / Germany near the end of this year . The site at Brunsbüttel is planned to be converted to produce MDI.
At present, demand for TDI is “higher than ever,” said Patrick Thomas, CEO of BMS. While BMS’ global TDI plants currently operate at around 85% on average, the 300,000 t/y plant at Cajoing / China, is being run “flat out,” he said.
Bayer’s plans for a CO pipeline to link plastics production at Dormagen and Krefeld-Uerdingen meanwhile continue to face opposition. The latest blow to the project, on the drawing boards for seven years, was dealt in February, when an expert opinion commissioned by the environment ministry in the state North Rhine-Westphalia said the 67-km pipeline did not make sense economically. In response to the 184-page paper, which concluded that transporting the gas through the pipeline would cost up to 60% more than producing it locally, Bayer cast doubt on the state’s calculation. The group said it had already explored alternatives to the pipeline before deciding on the investment and, what’s more, its numbers had been corroborated by independent experts.