JiangXi Black Cat inaugurates a further carbon black plant

Last September, German chemical company Lehmann & Voss and its ‘Luvomaxx’ business unit signed an exclusive sales agreement with China’s JiangXi Black Cat Carbon Black, giving it exclusive distribution rights in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. Luvomaxx business unit head Karl-Heinz Teschke recently returned from China, and has reported on the entry into service of JiangXi Black Cat’s eight carbon black facility.

The new plant in Jining, Shandong Province commenced operations in mid-March, initially with two lines that each produce 40kt of reinforcing furnace black. An additional line for reinforcing and another for semi-reinforcing carbon blacks are set to be added by the end of 2014. When JiangXi Black Cat’s investment is complete, the plan is to operate a total of four lines that each produce 40kt of active carbon black and one line producing 40kt of semi-active carbon black, giving a total capacity of 200,000 tonnes. The largest manufacturer of furnace black in China will then have an overall capacity of 1.09 million tonnes and should therefore occupy at least the number four position in the world rankings.

At the same time, a refinery for approx. 300kt of coal tar oil is being created. Together with local supply opportunities for natural gas, this will ensure a secure source of high-grade feedstock and process gas.