Perstorp Opens New Oxo Plant to Strengthen Position in PVC Plasticizers, Chemical Intermediates

Perstorp officially opened a major extension to its capacity to produce PVC plasticizers and key chemical intermediates. The new state-of-the-art Oxo plant in Stenungsund, Sweden, began producing material soon after its start-up in January, and is now running at full regime and delivering high quality material according to plan.

“The new production platform is the single largest investment in Perstorp’s history and clearly demonstrates Perstorp’s commitment to the PVC industry,” says Perstorp CEO Jan Secher. “It significantly boosts our output of valeraldehyde and 2-propyl heptanol (2-PH), two key raw materials for Perstorp’s innovative general purpose PVC plasticizers, EmolteneT 100 and PevalenT. It is a testimony to our commitment to the PVC industry, and puts us in a very strong competitive position.”

Perstorp now has one of the few fully integrated platforms in Europe providing customers with ready access to high performance, sustainable and cost-effective plasticizers. The Oxo plant is also a source of products for other key markets: 2-propyl heptanol is used in production of lubricants, adhesives and surfactants, for example. While n-valeric acid, which is also made in the plant directly from valeraldehyde, is an important raw material for lubricants, pharmaceuticals and fragrances.

Jerker Olsson, Vice President Business Unit Oxo, says: “The upstream integration into essential raw materials greatly strengthens Perstorp’s position as a reliable supplier of innovative plasticizers to the PVC market. We have raised our total Oxo capacity by 150,000 tonnes per year and become one of the few fully integrated suppliers of plasticizers.”

“This improved production position, in combination with logistics centres in several countries, now provides our customers with improved access to market-leading high performance, sustainable and cost effective plasticizers. We can offer our customers a level of reliability, consistency and customization that our customers need.”

Olsson adds: “Our new Oxo plant is a great example of Swedish innovation in sustainable process solutions. It has been built to the highest environmental and safety standards.”

Perstorp offers two ranges of general purpose plasticizers, EmolteneT 100 and PevalenT. EmolteneT 100, a C10 plasticizer (di-propyl heptyl phthalate, DPHP), is one of the thoroughly tested phthalate plasticizers on the market. It is intended for outdoor durable applications, most notably cables, wires and roofing membranes, where it contributes to extra durability under harsh conditions.

PevalenT is an innovative non-phthalate plasticizer, partially derived from renewable resources, that meets the safety and performance requirements of “close-to-consumer” PVC applications such as flooring and coated fabrics. It provides unbeatable softness and UV stability, and presents processors and users with a highly sustainable solution for a large number of high-volume applications.

PevalenT further reduces the carbon footprint of flexible PVC, it has no VOC (volatile organic compound) emissions and its high durability helps extend the useful life of finished products. PevalenT is registered according to REACH.