Russian petrochemical giant Sibur (Moscow; www.sibur.com) has put a dioctyl terephthalate plasticiser (DOTP) facility onstream in Perm / Russia – see Plasteurope.com of 30.06.2017. According to the company, the 100,000 t/y plant is the largest in Europe. With domestic demand at about 60,000 t/y of the plasticiser, Sibur plans to export the remaining quantities to Europe.

The Perm DOTP plant is the first such facility in Russia. Previously, domestic demand had to be covered with imports coming mainly from Europe. “DOTP is a new product for the Russian market. Along with being one of the key import substitution projects in Russia’s petrochemical industry, the Perm facility is also going to drive the growth of the country's non-commodity exports,” said Sibur’s chairman of the management board Dmitry Konov. The company invested around RUB 6.95 bn (EUR 96m) in the project.

“Unlike phthalate plasticisers DOTP is an eco-friendly product that complies to the highest European and other international environmental standards,” the company added. The material has a range of applications, including in the construction and automotive sectors as well as floor coverings.