SABIC inaugurates Ultem production plant in Spain

SABIC Innovative Plastics (Pittsfield, MA) has officially opened its new, €300 million Ultem polyetherimide (PEI) resin production facility in Cartagena, Spain, boosting global capacity for the high-heat material by 35%. SABIC's second Ultem resin plant, the Cartagena site also has scalable capacity for producing SABIC's Extem polyimide resin grades and specialty intermediates, like anhydrides, which can be used for modification of coatings, adhesives, or thermosets or as the base chemical for other polymers pharmaceuticals or pigments.

SABIC Innovative Plastics production plant in Cartagena, Spain.

SABIC's forerunner, GE Plastics, made Ultem commercial in 1984, with initial production at its Mt. Vernon, IN facility. The company's initial investment in the Cartagena site came in the form of a compounding plant in 1989. In November 2003, the company announced plans for a new plant at Cartagena, dedicated to Ultem manufacturing, with a price tag of €350 million. In the intervening years, SABIC purchased GE Plastics in May 2007.