The Chemours Co., a global chemistry company with market positions in titanium technologies, fluoroproducts and chemical solutions, has taken another step in its five-point transformation plan by investing in large-scale manufacturing to expand supply of its Opteon family of products.
Chemours will invest $230 million over three years to construct the new facility at the Chemours Corpus Christi site in Ingleside, Texas, with startup expected in the third quarter of 2018. This investment will triple capacity of Opteon products.
The company says the Opteon portfolio is a breakthrough line of solutions with very low global warming potential (GWP). The new site will use a patented process to manufacture Opteon YF (HFO-1234yf), which is used in automotive air conditioning and in Opteon refrigerant blends for a range of applications.
“Opteon products were developed in response to increasingly stringent environmental regulations, and in many cases they perform better than the products they replace,” said Mark Vergnano, president and CEO. “This is another step in our transformation plan, and is a shining example of how Chemours is investing in innovative growth opportunities as we become a higher value chemistry company, delivering essential solutions that improve the quality of life.”
According to the company, this investment will create the world’s largest facility for manufacturing hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs), and the location will allow Chemours to efficiently serve the growing market in North America and Europe, as well as the rest of the world.
The company adds that the expanded capacity will enable Chemours to meet customer needs in the face of exponential growth in demand for Opteon products. The company estimates that 40 million cars using HFO-1234yf will be on the road by the end of 2017, growing to 140 million by the end of 2020. The company also predicts that 1,000 supermarket and commercial refrigeration systems worldwide will be using Opteon XP40 by the end of 2016, growing to as many as 10,000 systems by the end of 2020.
For more information, visit opteon.com.
