The chemical factories is in the early stages of a major transformation in the way it carries out manufacturing. This comes as a result of Industry 4.0, and Nouryon is already seeing some enormous benefits.
Chemical factories creates products by transforming organic and inorganic raw materials with chemical processes. Chemicals generally are classified into two groups: commodity chemicals and specialty chemicals. Commodity chemical factories produce large quantities of basic and relatively inexpensive compounds in large plants, often built specifically to make one chemical. Commodity plants often run continuously, typically shutting down only a few weeks a year for maintenance.

Specialty-batch or performance chemical factories produce smaller quantities of more expensive chemicals on an "as needed" basis that are used less frequently. Often there is only one or a limited number of suppliers producing a given product. In contrast to the production of commodity chemicals, batch manufacturing requires that the raw materials, processes, operating conditions, and equipment change on a regular basis to respond to the needs of customers.

The Chemical sector produces a multitude of environmental impacts. It is one of the largest users of natural gas, which is required for energy and as a feedstock. The sector emitted more than 1.5 million tons of criteria air pollutants, of which more than 80 percent were carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) (NEI, 2002). Nearly half of these emissions are energy related. The Chemical sector also manages a huge amount of chemicals that are reported to EPA's Toxic Release Inventory. About 5 percent of the more than 10 billion pounds of chemicals managed are disposed of or otherwise released to air and water, while the rest goes to treatment, energy recovery, and recycling.
The chemical factories is responsible for many products that we use daily and that are vital to our prosperity. Rotterdam plays a key role in this sector and is in direct contact with Antwerp and the Rhine Ruhr region via integrated pipeline connections.
The presence of many chemical factories and refineries within Europe’s most important logistical hub makes Rotterdam a petrochemical hotspot. It is the ultimate transit port for your cargo or for the development of new chemical factories initiatives, and a great place to establish your business. Other factors that make it even more interesting include the high safety standards and the unparalleled infrastructure, digital infrastructure, facilities and synergy advantages.
Outlook for the chemical factories
Global chemical production (excluding pharmaceuticals) is expected to grow by 2.7% in 2024, faster than in the previous year (2023: +1.7%). We anticipate weak growth in production in the advanced economies following the sharp decline in the previous year (2024: +0.8%, 2023: –4.9%). Growth in the emerging markets is expected to slow slightly (2024: +3.5%, 2023: +4.8%).

In China, the world’s largest chemical market, we are forecasting lower but still high growth in chemical production of 4.0% following the strong growth in the previous year (2023: +7.5%). We expect growth stimulus to come primarily from the consumer goods and electronics industries. Following the considerable decline in chemical production in the other emerging markets of Asia, we expect a gradual recovery (2024: +3.0%, 2023: –2.4%). The main growth driver is India with expected growth of 4.5%.