Arkema invests over €70M in Fluoropolymers in France

The world leader in PVDF fluoropolymer, an innovative and fast-growing (+7% p.a.) performance material, Arkema announces a major project for the development of its Kynar® PVDF business in Europe. Over €70M are to be invested into the Pierre-Bénite site in France, in particular to increase Kynar® PVDF production capacity by 50%, and so support customers in high-growth applications.

This capital expenditure plan of over €70M will help increase by 50% fluoropolymer production capacity in Pierre-Bénite by 2014. It also entails major technological advances such as the implementation of an innovative high purity process, a new effluent treatment plant, and a contribution to investments for the implementation of the site’s Technological Risk Prevention Plan.

This ambitious program will provide long-term visibility for the fluorochemicals activity as a whole in France, and so consolidate the production chain around the Pierre-Bénite site as well as the Saint-Auban site which produces the monomer for some of the fluorogases.

Arkema today stands as the leader in the global PVDF market with a unique industrial presence in the three major regions of the world. In addition to Europe with Pierre-Bénite, Saint-Auban and Zaramillo, Arkema operates world-scale fluorochemicals facilities in China with the Changshu platform and in the United States with the Calvert City site, both of which have been benefiting from many investments in the last 3 years.

A recognized brand in the top-end coatings market with outstanding positioning over many years in the traditional markets of oil extraction, cable manufacture, chemical engineering, and semiconductor production, Arkema has been investing heavily in R&D since 2006 to develop a wide range of sustainable solutions for fast-growing emerging markets such as drinking water filtration, lithium ion batteries, and photovoltaic panels.