Solvay Indupa (Buenos Aires, Argentina), one of the largest polyvinyl chloride (PVC) suppliers in the Mercosur region, will invest a further $135 million to expand and increase the competitiveness of its PVC plant in Santo Andre, Brazil. This second stage of expansion, following the plan announced in August 2006, comprises the creation of an integrated plant to produce ethylene with ethanol originating from sugar cane. Ethylene and chlorine are the two main feedstocks needed to manufacture PVC.

Solvay reports the Santo Andre facility, when operating, will be the first industrial project in the Americas implementing renewable resources for the production of PVC. the expansion, to be completed by 2010, would then give the plant an installed capacity of 360,000-tons/yr of PVC; 360,000 tons/yr of vinyl chloride monomer (VCM); 235,000 tons/yr of caustic soda; and 60,000-tons/yr of bioethylene.

Solvay Indupa has two production sites: in Bahía Blanca, Argentina, and Santo André (Brazil). The Solvay Group (Brussels, Belgium) owns 70.1% of the supplier with the outstanding shares traded on the Buenos Aires stock market.

The Solvay group is the second largest PVC supplier in Europe and third largest globally. In addition to SolVin, its joint venture with BASF in Europe, the Group’s activities in PVC include affiliates Solvay Indupa and Vinylthai in Thailand.—[email protected]