German chemical group Lanxess AG launched a new plant yesterday for raw pigment production in Shanghai to replace external sourcing. Rolf Haselhorst, responsible for Lanxess's inorganic pigment business in Asia Pacific, said its inorganic pigment unit has registered average annual sales growth of 15 percent over the past five years in China, amid the construction boom.

Production from the new 20,000-ton-a-year plant, in southwestern Jinshan District, will mainly supply raw materials to an existing Lanxess pigment plant in Taopu, northwestern Shanghai, and the rest could be used to supply other Lanxess sites worldwide.

Haselhorst said Lanxess will expand capacity of the plant "sooner or later" as "the Asia Pacific region is only at the beginning of its growth."