Adipic acid chain closure for BASF

BASF is to end production of three chemicals at its main site in Ludwigshafen. This is part of an ongoing strategic review that is being undertaken “to ensure competitiveness under changing market conditions” and will lead to about 180 job cuts.

Production of cyclododecanone (CDon) and cyclopentanone (CPon) will end in 1H 2025. CDon is used in the synthesis of musk fragrances and UV stabilisers, though mainly as a raw material for lauryl lactam, a precursor for polyamide (PA) 12. CPon is a building block for crop protection agents and APIs, a solvent in semiconductor manufacture and a fragrance precursor.

In 2H 2025, BASF will also cease production of adipic acid, which had already been scaled down but was continued in order to ensure the supply of raw materials for CDon and CPon. It will carry on producing at sites in South Korea and France. Adipic acid is also used to produce PAs, polyurethanes, coatings and adhesives, among other things.