LyondellBasell's Wesseling LDPE production partly shut after blast

23 January 2012 11:59  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS)--LyondellBasell’s low density polyethylene (LDPE) output at its polyolefins production site in Wesseling near Cologne, Germany, remains partly shut following an explosion over the weekend, the Netherlands-headquartered producer said on Monday.

The blast, which occurred at one of two LDPE plants at the site on Saturday morning, injured seven workers who were working in the area.

LyondellBasell said that the second LDPE plant and all other units at the site were unaffected and are running normally.

The company were unable to disclose how much of its LPDE capacity has been affected by the explosion. According to ICIS, LyondellBasell has a total LDPE production capacity of 430,000 tonnes/year at the Wesseling site.

“The incident was quickly brought under control by operations and site emergency response and the affected unit was safely shut down,” said Andreas Anker, a spokesperson for LyondellBasell.

“All other units at the Wesseling plant are not affected by this incident and are running normal,” he added.

Anker said the cause of the incident is still unknown and will be fully investigated in collaboration with the local authorities.

The seven workers suffered light injuries and were hospitalised for observation before being released on Saturday, he added.

For more on LDPE visit ICIS chemical intelligence

By: Franco Capaldo
+44 (0)20 8652 3214

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