BASF to build plant in US
pharmafile | May 8, 2012 | News story | Manufacturing and Production |Â Â BASF, Taylor, manufacturing, productionÂ
BASF has said it plans to build a new manufacturing facility for formic acid at its production site in Louisiana, US, cementing its position as the world’s largest producer of the ingredient.
Formic acid is a widely-used chemical intermediate that is important for the production of a range of chemicals and pharmaceuticals, including caffeine, enzymes, antibiotics and artificial sweeteners.
The new plant in Geismar will have an annual production capacity for formic acid of more than 50,000 tonnes, boosting the group’s total output to around 250,000 tonnes a year, and will create up to 20 new jobs.
It will be the only formic acid plant in North America and will allow BASF to serve strategic markets in North and South America better, including applications for pharmaceuticals, said the firm. The group has two other production sites for formic acid, at Ludwigshafen in Germany and Nanjing, China.
Start-up of the facility is expected in the second quarter of 2014, according to BASF.
Excipient production transfers
Meanwhile, BASF has said it intends to transfer production of one of its pharmaceutical excipients – the solubility enhancer Kolliphor TPGS (vitamin E polyethylene glycol succinate) – from Illinois to Germany in order to boost efficiencies.
The company stressed that its facility in Kankakee, Illinois, would remain a key site in its manufacturing network, focusing on its nutrition and health business.
Transferring the Kolliphor activities to Minden in Germany would “create a more centralised production facility, reduce complexity in the production setup, and provide room for future expansion”, said BASF. The transition is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2014.
Minden is a specialist pharmaceutical ingredient facility that has been producing active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and excipients for more than 70 years.
Phil Taylor
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