Borealis
 | |
| Type | Public Limited |
|---|---|
| Industry | Petrochemicals |
| Founded | 1994 |
| Headquarters | Vienna, Austria |
| Key people | Mark Garrett, CEO; Daniel Shook, CFO |
| Products | polyolefins, hydrocarbons, base chemicals |
| Employees | 5,300 (2011) |
| Website | www.borealisgroup.com |
Borealis AG is Europe's second largest producer of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) and is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.
Overview
Borealis AG is an international company in producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) products for the infrastructure, automotive and packaging market sectors. Its plastics are converted by customers into products such as food packaging, medical devices, diapers, energy and communication cables, water and sanitation distribution pipes and automotive parts.
With EUR 507 million net profit in 2011 and 5,300 employees, Borealis is headquartered in Vienna and operates primarily in Europe, with manufacturing operations in Belgium, Central Europe (Austria and Germany), Finland and Sweden. It also operates compounding units in Brazil, Italy and the USA, two innovation centres, European Innovation Headquarters as well as customer service centres in several countries.
Though Borealis’ core products are polyolefins, the collective name for PE and PP, it also produces hydrocarbons, namely ethylene, propylene and phenol. With the acquisition of Agrolinz Melamine International (AMI), the company is expanding its product portfolio to include melamine and fertilizer.
History
Borealis was founded in 1994 by the merging of Neste and Statoil. In 1998 the petro chemistry sector of OMV was included; OMV and IPIC took over the 50% business share of Neste. In 2005 Statoil gave up its share of Borealis and one year later, in June 2006, the headquarter was relocated from Copenhagen to Vienna.
Borealis is owned 64% by the International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) of Abu Dhabi and 36% by OMV, the Austrian oil and natural gas group.
Products
Infrastructure
Pipe systems
Together with its joint venture Borouge, Borealis supplies polyolefin plastics products for the pipe industry. Applications cover water and gas distribution, waste and sewage disposal, chemical and industrial projects, in-house plumbing and heating as well as oil & gas exploration and transport.
Energy and communication cables
The company supplies polyolefin compounds for the wire and cable industry, which are used in low, medium, high and extra-high voltage energy transmission and distribution cables, in data and communication cables and in building and automotive wires.
Automotive
Borealis provides plastics products to the automotive industry for use in dashboards, door side claddings, front ends, air vent systems, bumpers under the bonnet and under-body shieldings. These products are used in areas such as zero gap applications for bumpers, off-line painted body panels and scratch resistant materials for car interiors and exteriors.
Packaging
Borealis polyolefins are used for applications such as healthcare, heavy duty shipment sacks, food packaging, flexible and rigid transport packaging, bottles, crates, boxes, trays and pallets.
Base chemicals
Phenol and acetone
Phenol and acetone are produced at Borealis' facility in Finland and are sold mainly to the adhesive, fibre, epoxy resin and polycarbonate industries in northern Europe. Phenol is used in adhesives, construction materials, carpets, CDs, DVDs, mobile phones and household appliances. Acetone is commonly used in solvents for paints, acrylics, fibres and pharmaceuticals.
Melamine and fertilizer
Agrolinz Melamine International (AMI) was consolidated into Borealis in 2007 and renamed Borealis Agrolinz Melamine GmbH. Agrolinz provides melamine (used to treat flooring and furniture for resistance to wear and tear) and fertilizer. With its daughter company Linzer Agro Trade, Borealis operates its own wholesaling business in the Danube region where Borealis provides fertilizer. In January 2012, Borealis acquired the French fertilizer producer PEC-Rhin.
Borstar proprietary technology
The company uses Borstar PE and PP technology to design molecular structured materials.
Joint venture Borouge
Borouge is Borealis’ joint venture with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). Its facility in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi (UAE) produces Borstar PE products for the infrastructure (pipe, wire and cable), automotive and packaging markets. Borouge is the sole provider of the Borealis product line for the Middle East and Asia.
Officially opened in October 2002, this production facility was the first Borstar facility in the Middle East and Asia with a 600,000 t/y cracker as well as two Borstar bimodal PE lines that produce up to 600,000 t/y.
In 2010, under the project name of Borouge 2, Borouge tripled the polyolefins manufacturing capacity of the plant in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi to 2 million tonnes per year. The US$ 4.5 billion investment includes an additional ethane cracker, a third polyethylene unit and two new polypropylene units.
With the Borouge 3 project, the company is expanding its petrochemical plant at Ruwais in Abu Dhabi to 4.5 million tonnes per year (t/y) by mid-2014.