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​Guangdong, attractive market for petrochemical industry to thrive: Senior Vice President of New Verbund Site China, BASF

"We certainly want to be part of China's growth. As the most prosperous province in the country, Guangdong's high-quality development provides business opportunities for BASF," said Haryono Lim, Senior Vice President of New Verbund Site China of BASF and General Manager of BASF Integrated Site (Guangdong) Co. Ltd., when accepting an interview with Nanfang Daily & GDToday recently.

On September 6, BASF kicked off the official production of its Verbund site in Guangdong's Zhanjiang. As the German chemical giant's largest investment to date, the site is also China's first wholly foreign-funded project in the heavy chemical industry.

It is expected that the first plant of this site will supply an additional capacity of 60,000 metric tons of engineering plastics compounds per year in China, so as to meet the growing market demands of the automotive and electronics industries here.

According to Lim, Guangdong has been an attractive place for the petrochemical industry to thrive because of its ability to pool talent, a well-planned industrial cluster, and favorable governmental policies that have been continuously implemented to optimize the business environment.

In addition, Guangdong's pursuit of high-quality development and industrial upgrade provides excellent potential for BASF's future business. "BASF would like to participate in this development journey by contributing our in-depth know-how in chemistry and sharing our best practices in sustainability," Lim stated.

Guangdong packed with huge potential for the petrochemical industry

Nanfang Daily & GDToday: What will be produced by the first plant of the Zhanjiang Verbund site? How will the products influence the industry?

Haryono Lim: The first plant of its Zhanjiang Verbund site will supply an additional capacity of 60,000 metric tons of engineering plastics compounds per year in China, in order to meet the growing demand of our customers, particularly in the automotive and electronics industries.

The Zhanjiang Verbund site will contribute to the industrial transformation of Guangdong and support customers in multiple industries there. It will also fill the gap in the high-quality chemical products supply.

Nanfang Daily & GDToday: Since the MoU was signed to invest in the Zhanjiang Verbund site, how has the petrochemical industry in Guangdong developed?

Haryono Lim: Guangdong has been an attractive place in recent years for talent, providing a perfect environment for the chemical industry to thrive.

A well-planned industrial cluster also ensures better use of resources not only in production, but also in logistics and infrastructure. Comprehensive government support, from a favorable policy environment to reliable infrastructures, is indispensable.

The local government has also continuously improved the overall business environment and strengthened the implementation of its reform policies by adopting new targeted measures.

Hope to attract more partners to invest in Zhanjiang

Nanfang Daily & GDToday: What does BASF think about the future development of Guangdong and China in terms of the petrochemical industry?

Haryono Lim: For BASF, China is currently the second largest market after the United States, with the strongest potential for growth. Around 60 percent of global chemical demand growth over the next 10 years will come from China. As a company that has been doing business here for over 137 years, we certainly want to be part of that growth. We are committed to the Chinese market.

Guangdong has always been the forerunner in China's reform and opening up. The development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) creates significant opportunities for a wide range of sectors in the area, and unleashes the economic potential for future success. This provides business opportunities to BASF as we have been providing high-quality products and solutions to a variety of industries in the region.

In addition, chemical products in South China are undersupplied. BASF would like to participate in this development journey by contributing our in-depth knowledge of chemistry and sharing our best practices in sustainability.

We are not only exploring cooperation opportunities with neighboring companies to create synergies in the value chain upstream and downstream. As a leading chemical producer, we see it as a joint task to develop Donghai Island together with the authorities. We hope to be able to attract more of BASF's valuable customers and partners to invest in Zhanjiang.

Reporters: Abby, Chang Daoli (Nanfang Daily), Lily (intern)

Editors: Wing, Olivia, Nan, Jerry

Poster: Mia


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