LG Chem Ltd, South Korea's largest chemical company, said on Monday it will invest $100 million to double output of lucrative acrylonitrile, butadiene and styrene (ABS) plastics at its joint venture plant in China by 2018.

LG Chem plans to lift the production capacity by 150,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes per year at its plant in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, jointly owned with China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). ABS is mainly used to make parts for appliances, cars and industrial machinery.

The move comes as LG Chem seeks to focus on high-value added products such as ABS. CNOOC and LG Chem each hold a 50 percent stake in the plant currently, but LG Chem said in a statement it will own 70 percent following the investment plan.

LG Chem said the Chinese plant expansion will raise its total ABS output to 2 million tonnes in total.

In October it said it would convert one of its two polystyrene (PS) production lines at the Yeosu plant in South Korea into lines making ABS by the first half of 2017. That move alone is expected to increase ABS output to 880,000 tonnes annually.

 

Source : af.reuters.com

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