TURKEY: thyssenkrupp to build second polymer plant for Köksan in Turkey

thyssenkrupp’s plant engineering business has won a second order from the Turkish packaging producer Köksan for a new PET production plant. The plant will be built in Gaziantep, Turkey, next to an existing production line erected by thyssenkrupp in 2013. Its construction will double the site's production capacity to 432,000 t/y of PET resin. Completion and commissioning are planned for 2022.

The plant will use the Melt-To-Resin (MTR) process patented by thyssenkrupp’s subsidiary Uhde Inventa-Fischer to produce various grades of resin. With this investment, Köksan intends to strengthen its market position both nationally and in the region. The PET will be supplied to the local market as well as to countries of the Middle East, CIS, America, Europe, and Africa regions.

Werner Steinauer, CEO of Uhde Inventa-Fischer, said: “We are very proud that Köksan chose us to build another state-of-the art PET plant. Our well-proven MTR process offers many advantages compared to conventional technologies, including for example optimized energy consumption and lower production costs. In addition, the plant can be fed with a certain amount of recycled PET to meet the changing needs of customers and local authorities.”

thyssenkrupp’s scope of supplies and services includes the license, basic and detail engineering, supply of all major plant equipment and supervision of the erection and commissioning activities. Furthermore, the operating personnel of Köksan is going to be trained by the specialists from thyssenkrupp.

M. Murat Kökoğlu, CEO of Köksan: “We are very happy to announce the signature of the second contract with thyssenkrupp, as already the first production line in Gaziantep delivers excellent performance and product quality continuously. In addition, we are currently examining the joint construction of a further PET polymerization plant based on chemical recycled PET for various textile and packaging applications.”

Source: thyssenkrupp, Essen, Germany; 21 Apr 2020
(Syed Rashid Ali, Karachi, Pakistan)