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China's Sinopec and Germany's chemicals producer BASF agreed to jointly add $1.4 billion to their joint venture in Nanjing in Jiangsu province, to serve the growing demand for their products in the domestic market. The expansion is for the production of mainstream specialty chemicals for the Chinese market, consumed by multiple industries such as c... onstruction, electronics, pharmaceuticals, automotive and chemical manufacturing, the two companies said in a joint statement. In March 2008, Sinopec and BASF already agreed to invest $900 million to expand the joint project. BASF yesterday said in a statement that the figure was increased "as both the scope and the costs of the investment have increased". The additional investment at the joint venture, BASF-YPC Co Ltd (BYC), will be allocated for the capacity expansion of the existing steam cracker, to 740,000 metric tons a year from 600,000 tons. Steam cracker is a facility to produce ethylene, the raw material for plastics and synthetic fibers. Part of the investment will be for the construction of 10 new chemical plants, and the expansion of three existing plants, which will strengthen the market competitiveness of the joint venture by broadening the product scope and further leveraging the advantages of the integration, said the statement. "The expansion conforms to China's revitalization plan for the petrochemical industry, fosters the integration of BYC, broadens the portfolio of downstream products in Nanjing, meets the increasing demands in the east China region, and promotes the upgrading of China's petrochemical industry," said Wang Tianpu, president, Sinopec. "With this step, BYC will be among the most competitive sites of Sinopec operations," he said. Martin Brudermller, member of the board of executive directors of BASF SE responsible for Asia Pacific, said: "The expansion of BYC underscores our strong belief in the growth opportunities of the Chinese market and is another milestone in cooperative development. With the products from our plants, we will ...Read More