BASF to build new plant in Brazil

BASF has started construction for its new production plant for sodium methylate in Guaratinguetá/Brazil, its largest site in South America. The plant will have a capacity of 60,000 metric tons per year and is primarily intended to supply the regional market. It is the second BASF plant for this product, in addition to a plant in Ludwigshafen. The project will involve a capital expenditure in the low double-digit million euro range. The plant is expected to be operational from the end of 2011 onwards. Sodium methylate is an efficient and reliable catalyst for the production of biodiesel, which has developed into an important and increasing alternative for diesel fuels in the past years. Biodiesel meets the requirements of engine manufacturers for high-quality fuels. The company expects about 15 percent of the annual global demand for biodiesel, which is about 30 million tons, to come from South America in 2015.