Repsol will invest 105 million euros in the Puertollano Industrial Complex (Ciudad Real) to build the first plant on the Iberian Peninsula capable of manufacturing ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), a material considered a ‘super polymer’ ‘ for its exceptional properties.
This new plant will be operational at the end of 2024 and will have an annual capacity of 15,000 tons, as reported by the company in a press release.
For the construction of the plant, Repsol has selected the technology of the company DSM, a recognized producer of UHMWPE based in the Netherlands. This implies the use of a “cutting-edge, proven technology that adapts to the needs of customers”.
UHMWPE is a material that, due to its exceptional hardness and strength characteristics, can replace steel in some applications and has high impact resistance, high toughness and self-lubricating capacity.
Among its applications are highly differentiated products with high added value such as lithium ion battery separators, construction profiles, coatings, parts for personal and military protection, and medical applications such as prostheses, implants or dialysis filters.
Currently, the UHMWPE market is growing due to the extraordinary characteristics of this material, which combines excellent mechanical properties with great lightness. With this project, Repsol will be one of the few companies in the world that manufactures this ‘super polymer’.
This investment will promote direct, indirect and induced employment and represents a “decided commitment” to the industrial development of the country and a boost to the socio-economic growth of the area.
With the support of auxiliary companies, the construction and commissioning of the plant will require some 700 professionals from various disciplines.
