Lucite International Group Ltd., Southampton, UK, a group company of Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd., has decided to construct a new plant for the manufacture of methacrylic acid (MAA) at its facility in Beaumont, Texas/USA. Total planned investment is approximately $36.2 million and production capacity will be 23,000 tons per year. The tentative construction is scheduled to start in July 2011 and production is scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of 2012. With the economic growth of emerging countries, supply of MAA remains tight in Asia, especially China, as well as in North and South America. Because demand for MAA is expected to grow, Lucite International has decided to build a supply base for MAA in the Americas region. MAA, which is produced using acetone cyanohydrin (ACH) as its main ingredient, is used as a raw material primarily in paint, adhesives, synthetic rubber and admixture for concrete.
