GERMAN-based Rhein Chemie, a wholly owned subsidiary of speciality chemicals firm Lanxess, is investing
EUR10 million in a new facility in Porto Feliz, Brazil, to manufacture Rhenoshape curing bladders and Rhenogran
pre-dispersed additives.
This is part of the EUR30 million investment by Lanxess in Brazil, which also includes a 20,000 tonne/year-plant for producing the company’s engineering plastics Durethan and Pocan.
The plant will have an output of 2,000 tonnes/year of rubber additives and produce 170,000 bladders/year. It will start up in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Rhein Chemie also has facilities in Argentina and Uruguay that produce Rhenoshape bladders.
It entered the bladder business by acquiring Argentinean company Darmex early this year
and has also expanded its bladder capacity in Argentina by 40%. Global bladder production is estimated
to be worth EUR300 million, with 40% of bladder production outsourced to independent manufacturers. The
improved thermal conductivity of the bladder compound, plus a number of other factors, increases the quality of a tyre, resulting in greater safety and lower rolling resistance and thus, lower fuel consumption.
Last year, Rhein Chemie’s turnover was EUR283 million, an increase of 40% compared to the previous year, and in the first half of 2011, this climbed by 19%. Its growth is aided by demand from Asia, where
its turnover grew by 8%.
To accelerate its growth, this year, Rhein Chemie also took over two product lines from US-based
Flexsys and acquired the tyre release agent business of Germany-based Wacker. (PRA)