BASF sells Luranyl polymer business to Romira

02-Sep-2002

BASF has sold its Luranyl business in Europe and Asia to Romira GmbH, a maker of engineering plastics in Pinneberg, Germany. The deal will take effect on September 1st. 2002. The parties agreed not to disclose the price.

Up to now, BASF has produced about 5,000 tonnes of the polymer annually in Germany and Korea. The company will use the freed capacity for other polymers. The sale will not affect jobs. Production of Luranyl will be transferred to Pinneberg.

"The sale of the Luranyl business continues our strategy of concentrating on the large, integrated value-chains within BASF. It consolidates our product range and releases production capacity for our high volume thermoplastics," says Fred Baumgartner, head of BASF's Styrenics division.

Luranyl, a blend of polyphenylene ether (PPE) and high-impact polystyrene (HIPS), exhibits characteristically high heat resistance over a wide range of temperatures and incorporates a halogen-free flame retardant. It is used widely for electrical and electronic applications such as battery chargers, transformers, electrical sockets and switches; Luranyl is also used in television sets.

Luranyl adds to Romira's range of engineering plastics. Commenting on the acquisition Udo Müller, Romira's managing director, said "Products like Luranyl allow medium-sized companies like Romira to meet very special customer requirements and complement the offerings of large companies. In expectation of good sales growth in the coming years we have expanded our site in Pinneberg by some 25,000 square metres."

Romira GmbH is a member of the Rowa group of companies, which includes Tramaco GmbH (Pinneberg) and Horst Müller Kunststoffe GmbH & Co. KG (Lichtenfels). In the last 12 years Romira has made a name for itself in engineering plastics-styrene copolymers in particular-and continually increased its market share. Romira's Pinneberg site is capable of producing 20,000 tonnes of polymer annually. The Rowa group will be at this year's FAKUMA trade fair for plastics converters in Friedrichshafen.

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