Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings will acquire a carbon fiber plant in the U.S. run by Germany's SGL Group by April, adding 1,000 tons of annual output capacity in hopes of capturing fast-growing demand related to wind turbines and cars.
The Japanese company will make the purchase, estimated at several tens of millions of dollars, through subsidiary Mitsubishi Rayon's U.S. unit. About 50 people work at the plant in Wyoming. Production initially is planned at 1,000 tons of carbon fiber a year using SGL's equipment, and Mitsubishi Chemical will consider upgrading the facility to quadruple output.
Mitsubishi Chemical operates carbon fiber plants in Japan's Aichi and Hiroshima prefectures, as well as in California. The company is expanding the Hiroshima and California facilities, looking to raise total annual capacity from 10,100 tons to 13,300 tons. The acquisition from SGL will boost capacity further.
Demand for carbon fiber used in wind turbines is expected to roughly double from 2016 to 2020, reaching 26,000 tons, while that for automotive use is seen more than tripling to 25,000 tons. The material increasingly is replacing steel as a lighter, stronger alternative.
Greater capacity is crucial to tapping this growing demand. Mitsubishi Chemical considered building a new plant in the U.S., but decided to reduce time needed for any construction and training of new staff by acquiring an existing facility instead.
SGL counts BMW and Volkswagen among its shareholders, and partners with Mitsubishi Chemical on materials used to make carbon fiber. The German company is focusing on a joint U.S. plant with BMW, and apparently was looking to spin off other manufacturing bases. SGL, which also is streamlining operations, decided last fall to sell its graphite electrode business to Japan's Showa Denko. - Nikkei