Arkema’s new plant in Navi Mumbai
Arkema (Colombes, France; www.arkema.com) will inaugurate a new polyester resin manufacturing facility in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India on February 13, 2019. This new facility also includes a dedicated laboratory to provide both application development and technical support. The facility will help Arkema better serve customers in the fast-growing powder coating market throughout India, as well as the Gulf Region and surrounding countries. This $15-million investment supports the group’s ongoing commitment to remain a leading global supplier to the coating industry.
“The Navi Mumbai facility significantly extends our global footprint for this product and allows us to better meet local demand in India and Southeast Asia, where we see strong growth and demand. India is one of the fastest growing markets in the world for these products. This facility will offer formulators in the region reliable supply and the resources they need to easily develop high-performance low-VOC powder coating products,” said Marc Schuller, Executive Vice President, Coating Solutions and Industrial Specialties for Arkema
The new facility will produce polyester powder resins marketed under the Reafree trade name. These polyester resins are primarily used to develop low-VOC powder coatings for a wide range of industrial and architectural applications.
Arkema’s manufacturing site in Navi Mumbai also produces alkyd and acrylic solutions and oil-free polyester resins, as well as reactive polyamide resins.
In addition to the new facility in Navi Mumbai, Arkema produces Reafree polyester resins and runs powder coating R&D laboratories at its facilities in Sant Celoni, Spain and North Kansas City, Missouri.