BASF to strengthen its automotive business in India

Expansion of coatings facilities in Mangalore and catalyst plant in Chennai

08-May-2008

BASF announced its plans to expand its offerings for the automotive industry in India with investments in plants and technology. The company will build a new engineering plastics compounding plant at its existing site in Thane, which is expected to come on stream by the second half of 2009. As well as being used in the automotive industry, engineering plastics are also employed in the electrical and electronics industries, for example.

BASF has also set up a computer aided engineering (CAE) lab in Thane where its engineers design and optimize new engineering plastic parts in close cooperation with customers. "Advanced CAE technology is a key competence of BASF in the field of engineering plastics," says Hermann Althoff, BASF's Group Vice President, Asia Pacific Engineering Plastics. "Offering this service to customers, combined with local supply from the new plant, is a major milestone in growing our engineering plastics business in India."

Further, BASF Coatings commissioned a new Refinish Color Lab at Mangalore in February 2008, and is expanding its e-coat facility, which is expected to be completed by end of 2008. Also underway is the expansion of BASF's catalyst plant in Chennai. The plant will triple its capacity by 2009, as announced in August 2007.

"Automotive is one of BASF's most important target industry segments and our second-largest source of sales after the chemical industry," explained Dr. Wolfgang Hapke, President Market & Business Development Asia Pacific. "In 2007, BASF derived over 13 percent of its total global sales of EUR58 billion from sales to the automotive industry."

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