Vantage Specialty Chemicals, Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.), a leading manufacturer and supplier of bio-based ingredients built on core surfactant chemistries, is expanding taurate capacity at its major manufacturing site in Leuna, Germany. The expansion will meet customer demand and anticipated market growth in consumer-focused end markets such as personal care, laundry and household, industrial and institutional (HI&I).
“As a longstanding leader in natural product derivatives, the expansion in Leuna reinforces our leadership in the taurates value chain,” said Steve Doktycz, Chief Executive Officer. “The additional capacity will allow us to meet global demand for mild surfactants, particularly in personal carewhere formulators favor our effective, sulfate-free surfactant portfolio for applications targeting sensitive skin and scalp irritation.”
Vantage is specifically expanding its METAUPON* NMT (N-Methyl Taurine) capacity to target demand in the personal care market. The multi-million-dollar investment is a two-phase expansion that will almost triple the site’s capacity for this strategic building block. The initial phase was completed in September 2022 with the second phase expected to come online in early 2025.
In addition to adding significant product capacity, the investment in the latest technology and state-of-the-art equipment will further strengthen energy efficiency at the site, reducing steam consumption by approximately 40% annually which relates to approximately 1000 tons of CO2 emissions per year.
Vantage Leuna is the company’s largest manufacturing site in the Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) region and became part of Vantage in 2019. Maintaining the quality standard DIN EN ISO 9001:2015 certification, this 23.5-acre (95,000 square meters) site is one of the world’s leading producers of taurates and their building blocks. The site also manufactures specialty surfactants and intermediates that support our consumer and industrial business divisions.