Infineum announced last Wednesday the opening of its new manufacturing facility at its Jurong Island site in Singapore. The facility marks the largest single investment Infineum has made to date and the first salicylate plant of its kind in Asia Pacific.

Xavier le Mintier, Infineum Chief Executive Officer, commented “Infineum’s aspiration is to expand its position as a global leader in the transportation additive industry. Today we have made a major step in that direction by bringing together the most advanced technology, process design, and best talents, here in the Asia Pacific region, here in Singapore.”

The plant will manufacture calcium salicylate, a unique detergent component and a critical part of Infineum's highly-differentiated top tier formulations. The new plant is an important addition to Infineum's global supply capability for these additives.

Trevor Russell, Infineum Executive Vice President of Sales & Supply, commented: “This is a key growth market for Infineum and our investment here is testament to our commitment to the Asia-Pacific region. Salicylates provide unique performance attributes for our differentiated top-tier additives marketed to passenger car, heavy-duty and marine lubricant formulators, and this new plant is targeted at meeting the growth aspirations of our customers in these product areas. Also, supply reliability is one of Infineum’s highest priorities and a key element of our value proposition. With this investment, the Infineum Singapore plant will become a manufacturing hub for calcium salicylate and will allow us to continue to deliver industry-leading supply performance.”

Xavier Leleux, Infineum Venture Manager, added: “The Infineum manufacturing site on Jurong Island in Singapore has been in operation for more than 30 years and has enjoyed the many advantages of the country, including excellent infrastructure and a talented workforce. Throughout the project, the support from the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and from JTC Corporation has been outstanding.”

"We are pleased that Infineum continues to grow its presence in Singapore. The new facility will extend the global reach of Infineum’s lubricant additives business and entrench Singapore’s leadership position in the market, both in the Asia Pacific region and globally. This investment builds on the strong foundation of the energy and chemicals industry towards high value added specialties, strengthening our existing base and further differentiating Singapore as a location for knowledge intensive technologies.” says Mr Eugene Leong, EDB Director, Energy and Chemicals.

The new salicylate facility represents the company’s largest investment since it was formed in 1999. The project required an effort of 4 million man-hours and the construction lasted 24 months. It was safely and successfully executed with the help of Chiyoda Singapore Pte. Ltd, the selected Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor.

The new facility has been designed incorporating the latest technology and best practice in chemical manufacturing. It will employ an integrated manufacturing process in which computer-automated operations and quality in-line systems govern the various equipment functions.