World's largest polyamide 12 complex in Marl, Germany, inaugurated

Evonik is celebrating a milestone in its history. Construction work on the new polyamide 12 complex at Marl Chemical Park is virtually complete and it will be taken into operation this year. Evonik has invested around half a billion euros in this future-oriented project. That is the largest investment in the company’s history in Germany.

Armin Laschet, Minister President of the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, applauded the project: “This complex stands for the future viability of our state. Investing in this state-of-the-art complex creates new, highly skilled jobs. Policy-makers need to do everything they can in the future to ensure that such investments are made here in Germany and not in other countries.”

The high-performance polymer polyamide 12 is used in attractive growth markets such as 3D printing, medical technology, automotive engineering, and as substitute for steel. Evonik's sites in Asia also offered attractive conditions for the construction of the world's most modern PA 12 complex.

Christian Kullmann, chairman of Evonik's executive board, praised the fact that the new complex can start operating this year despite the pandemic-related restrictions as a “masterstroke by our team.” He added: “Three years ago, we decided to produce this leading high-tech German product for the world market here in the Ruhr region. We have kept our word and completion of the demanding construction phase is almost on schedule. That creates growth, value, and jobs.”

Construction of the new complex has been virtually completed in just under two years. The individual process units will now be taken into regular operation step-by-step. Full start-up is scheduled for the fourth quarter. The complex creates 120 new highly skilled jobs. At the same time, it increases Evonik's production capacity for this high-performance polymer by more than 50 percent and gives it the world's largest PA 12 production complex in Marl (Germany).

Evonik has been developing customized high-performance polymers for demanding applications for more than 50 years and is a global leader in the production of PA 12. VESTAMID® compounds benefit from high demand in attractive markets, while the PA 12 powder VESTOSINT® is used, for example, to coat metals for consumer goods, dishwasher baskets, and parts used in the automotive industry. For many years, Evonik has also developed special polymer powders that enable industrial production of high-tech components using 3D printing.