Business Roundup

Borealis will spend $52 million to expand capacity for cross-linkable polyethylene at its plant in Stenungsund, Sweden. The firm will also spend $74 million to boost capacity for benzene, cumene, phenol, and acetone in Porvoo, Finland. Both projects are expected to be complete in 2007.

Dow Chemical's Hampshire Chemical unit has agreed to sell its Evans Chemetics business, which makes organic sulfur derivatives, to Germany's Bruno Bock Chemische Fabrik. The deal includes Hampshire's Waterloo, N.Y., plant.

PPG Industries and Idaho National Laboratory have agreed to extend their R&D effort into low-cost nanoparticles by one year. Potential applications include stronger lightweight body armor for soldiers and improved paints.

Johnson Matthey plans to build a plant producing emission control catalysts for motor vehicles in the South Korean province of Gyeonggi, southwest of Seoul. The facility will also conduct R&D and provide testing capabilities to car manufacturers.

Columbian Chemicals, Phelps Dodge's carbon black arm, is moving forward with plans to build a $67 million, 55,000-metric-ton-per-year carbon black plant in Camaçari, Bahia, Brazil. Construction is set to begin next year, and start-up is planned for the first quarter of 2007.

DuPont plans to build a coatings plant in Shanghai's Jiading district that will employ 250 people. The company expects that the plant, intended to supply China's automotive, refinish, and industrial coatings markets, will start production late in 2007.

Wacker has opened a new technical center in Jandira, São Paulo, Brazil, where it already has offices and a manufacturing plant. The company says the facility is meant to serve growing demand for polymers and silicones in South America.

Huntsman Corp. plans to build a 30 million-lb-per-year polyetheramine facility in Jurong Island, Singapore, by first-quarter 2007. It will complement plants in Conroe, Texas, and Llanelli, Wales, and boost Huntsman's polyetheramine capacity by about 25%.