Covestro Completes Modernisation of Dormagen TDI Plant

Covestro has successfully completed the modernisation of its Toluene Diisocyanate (TDI) plant in Dormagen, significantly enhancing sustainability and competitiveness. The upgraded facility will reduce annual CO₂ emissions by 22,000 tonnes, with improved energy efficiency playing a key role in the company’s climate protection efforts.

At an official commissioning event attended by around 60 guests from politics, business, and staff—including North Rhine-Westphalia’s Environmental Minister, Oliver Krischer—Covestro presented its latest energy efficiency targets.

“The successful completion of this project shows that climate protection and competitiveness can go hand in hand,” said Dr Philip Bahke, Head of the North Rhine-Westphalia Site Network. “The modernised plant sets new standards in energy efficiency and underlines our path toward climate-neutral production. In light of persistently high energy costs, the project significantly strengthens the competitiveness of TDI production in Europe. My special thanks go to the entire project team, who professionally implemented this complex modernisation during ongoing operations.”

The plant’s new process consumes 80% less energy than conventional methods, helping to cut CO₂ emissions by 22,000 tonnes annually. A key feature is a 150-tonne reactor, nearly 20 metres high, which captures reaction heat to generate steam. The project, launched in mid-2023, involved the installation of more than 3.5 kilometres of pipelines, 14 kilometres of cables, and hundreds of new pieces of equipment, valves, and monitoring systems.

“In Dormagen, we operate Europe’s largest TDI production plant. With the successful modernisation, we can now offer our customers TDI with an even better carbon footprint,” said Dr Christine Mendoza-Frohn, Head of Sales Performance Materials for EMEA and LATAM. “This supports our customers in achieving their own sustainability goals and strengthens our position as a reliable partner for climate-neutral and circular solutions.”

During the event, Covestro also announced its new global energy efficiency goal, aiming to cut CO₂ emissions from energy use per tonne of product by 20% by 2030 compared to 2020 levels. The Dormagen plant, with its 300,000-tonne annual capacity, demonstrates how existing production facilities can transition towards greater energy efficiency.

The modernisation received support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) through its funding programme for energy and resource efficiency.

Source: Covestro AG