Invista builds nitric acid plant on Jurong Island

Matthew Phan, Business Times 14 Nov 07;

INVISTA, a US manufacturer of fibres and polymers, is building a US$100 million plant on Jurong Island to make nitric acid, it said at the plant's groundbreaking yesterday.

Nitric acid is a feedstock for adipic acid, which is widely used as an intermediate chemical in many applications, from solvents and lubricants to electronics and cleaning aids.

The facility will be built next to Invista's existing plant for adipic acid, which will help improve the energy efficiency of the plants.

They are located on 20 ha of land on Jurong Island, on the part once known as Sakra Island. Invista's adipic acid plant was the first facility to be built on Sakra when construction started in 1991.

Construction for the new plant will begin immediately and is expected to be completed by mid-2009. The new plant will meet all the nitric acid needs of the adipic acid plant.

The facility will strengthen Invista's long-term supply for nitric acid, significantly increasing the competitiveness of its intermediates business in the region, said Warren Primeaux, president of Invista Intermediates.

It is the latest in a series of Asia growth initiatives the group has taken in the last year, including new manufacturing plants for spandex and nylon airbag fibres, and the acquisition of a nylon carpet fibre plant, he said.

Meanwhile, Invista's Sakra plant is 'one of the most decorated' in Singapore, according to the assistant managing director of the Economic Development Board (EDB), Aw Kah Peng.

It won three Gold Medals from the Ministry of Manpower for safety from 2003 to 2005, and recently received its second consecutive award for Workplace Health & Safety Excellence.

Invista also operates three spandex lines located in Tuas on the mainland.

The chemical industry is an essential component of Singapore's economy, with the manufacturing output of the cluster at $74 billion, surpassing the electronics sector, said Ms Aw.