(Yicai Global) July 21 -- German chemicals giant BASF has given final approval to build a planned EUR10 billion (USD10.2 billion) Verbund site in Zhanjiang, a city in China’s Guangdong province.

The focus will be on building the Verbund’s core, a steam cracker and downstream plants, including those for petrochemicals and intermediates, Ludwigshafen-based BASF said on July 19, adding that it expects to complete the integrated facility by 2030.

BASF developed and refined the Verbund concept -- a one-source system that connects different plants, energy flows, and infrastructure -- in Ludwigshafen and later applied it to other sites worldwide. The sites use the by-products from one production line as the raw materials for another to cut energy consumption, maximize the supply chain, and conserve resources.

China is BASF’s second-biggest market. In the first quarter of this year, the company’s revenue from China jumped 22 percent to EUR3.2 billion (USD3.3 billion) on a year earlier, according to its latest financial report. The firm’s global revenue climbed 19 percent to EUR23.1 billion (USD24.1 billion).

Guangdong has good foundations for many industries, and that is why BASF chose the location, said Zheng Daqing, senior vice president of business and market development at BASF China.

The Verbund site in Zhanjiang will be BASF’s third largest worldwide after those in Ludwigshafen, and Antwerp in Belgium. First-phase construction work started in 2020 to meet rising demand for more sustainable auto parts and lightweight materials for consumer products.

The first engineering plastics plant is starting up, while the thermoplastic polyurethanes plant will come on stream next year. The site will produce 60,000 metric tons of engineering plastics a year, boosting BASF's annual output in the Asia-Pacific region by over one-quarter to 290,000 tons.

Editor: Futura Costaglione