The Dow Chemical Co. recently announced new low capital intensity, high return investments in its upstream and downstream silicones franchise. The investment plan is reportedly intended to accelerate innovation and support global customers’ demand in high growth markets, such as high-performance building, home and personal care, electrical and industrial, consumer goods, and components assembly.

The investment plans include:

• A series of incremental siloxane debottleneck and efficiency improvement projects over the next three years to further increase capacity and efficiency in siloxane manufacturing facilities around the world; and
• A new hydroxyl functional siloxane polymer plant in Carrollton, Ky., which could increase polymer capacity in the Americas by 65%.

Additional expansion projects to increase capacity in Dow’s high-value performance silicones products and intermediates includes a new specialty resin plant in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu, China, which will provide resin intermediates for high value silicone products, including home and personal care, pressure sensitive adhesives (PSAs), antifoams, and moldable optics for lighting.

“The projects we are announcing today support our ability to continue to meet strong global demand for Dow’s silicones materials, enabling us to grow and innovate more quickly with customers and advancing our leading positions in our targeted end-markets,” said Jim Fitterling, CEO of The Dow Chemical Company and chief operating officer for the materials science division of DowDuPont. “Further, these targeted investments are expected to deliver fast paybacks and higher return on invested capital for Dow, contributing to greater earnings and cash generation.”

In addition, the company also announced the start of a feasibility study for the construction of a new, world-scale siloxane plant. The geographic location of the new proposed siloxane facility will be determined as an outcome of the feasibility study.

For more information, visit www.dow.com.