BASF Partnered with Air Liquide and Shenergy

BASF has signed a multi-year cooperation agreement with Air Liquide’s subsidiary SCIPIG and Shenergy Group’s subsidiary Shenji to advance the production of low-carbon methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI).

Under the deal, Shenji will turn bio-circular waste into biomethane that meets national standards and feed it into the Shanghai Gas network. SCIPIG will convert this biomethane into bio-hydrogen and bio-CO, which BASF will use to produce MDI and its derivatives with a reduced product carbon footprint. These bio-based MDIs can be used as pure isocyanates, blended with polymeric MDI, or processed into prepolymers for flexible foams, CASE applications, shoe soles, and thermoplastic polyurethane.

Dr. Jeffrey Lou, President and Chairman of BASF Greater China, said "I am thrilled to see BASF and Shenergy launching this project with Air Liquide, just one year after we signed a Memorandum of Understanding for biomethane cooperation. By applying bio-based feedstock, BASF will further reduce the carbon footprint of our products, demonstrating our commitment to expanding our sustainable product portfolio and driving circular economy. It also marks a pivotal step to enable our local customers’ green transformation and jointly build a low-carbon future."

Dinan Huang, Chairman of Shenergy Group, stated “Shenergy Group is committed to driving the circular economy by converting bio-based waste into valuable bioenergy. Today’s agreement marks a major milestone following last year’s partnership with BASF and a breakthrough in building a low-carbon value chain of ‘bio-based feedstock – green chemicals.’ Through this collaboration, we aim to accelerate green development and contribute to industry transformation and sustainable urban growth.”

Rui Coelho,  Air Liquide China Chief Executive Officer, said "This is the first time that bio-hydrogen and bio-CO have been locally produced in Shanghai from biomass, which will be fully compliant with ISCC* PLUS standards, following the respective site and product certifications. This contract kicks off the production of bio-products in SCIP, providing a momentum to support the decarbonization goals and the circular economy targets of the industrial players in the industrial park. Air Liquide China is committed to the development of reliable and competitive solutions that help our customers to reduce their carbon footprint."

Source: BASF