TPT March 2007

Industry News

Borealis invests €90mn to develop its polypropylene business

Strong growth at SMS group The SMS Group, Germany, won orders of over €3.2bn in 2007, an increase the company says is due to the global buoyancy of the steel industry. Other markets fared well such as the hardening and forging industry, the nonferrous metal producing industry and plastics processing industry. Orders from Germany formed 13 per cent of the company's overall order intake, showing a modest recovery on the domestic market. The most important sales regions for SMS remain China, Russia and India. However, other countries embarking on industrialization or an extensive modernization phase also contributed to the increased order volume. SMS also noted that the industry in the traditional steel regions of North America, western Europe and Japan invested at a normal rate. However, these countries are facing growing pressure to invest in revamps to retain their competitiveness.

Borealis, a leading provider of plastics solutions including tube and pipe, has announced it will expand its polypropylene (PP) capacity at Porvoo in Finland and extend the product range from its Borstar ® PP plant in Schwechat, Austria. The company will invest €25mn to expand the capacity of its PP plant in Porvoo, Finland, from 65,000tpa to 220,000tpa by the end of 2008. The increased capacity is intended to meet growing demand for innovative plastics solutions in the pipe and advanced packaging markets and better supply the developing Russian market. Borealis will also invest €35mn to create a four-reactor configuration at its Borstar ® PP plant in Schwechat, Austria, to support the production of superior materials that meet the needs of the automotive, pipe and advanced packaging industries. The plant is designed to take advantage of the expanding automotive markets in central and eastern Europe. The additional

gas phase reactor will be operational by 2009. In addition, Borealis will invest €30mn in a four-reactor Borstar PP pilot plant at Schwechat that will strengthen the company’s ability to develop innovative, advanced multimodal PP solutions. The pilot plant will be completed in 2009. Mr Wim Roels, Borealis vice president (innovation & technology), commented, “In addition to these asset investments in polypropylene, the ongoing investment in innovation centres and polymer expertise demonstrates our commitment to maintain our position.” The company also recently announced that it is expanding the plant at Burghausen in Germany to manufacture 330,000tpa of Borstar PP.

Borealis AG – Austria Fax : +43 122 400 333

SMS Group – Germany Fax : +49 211 881 4386 Website : www.sms-demag.com

Email : info@borealisgroup.com Website : www.borealisgroup.com

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