ALEXANDER COUNTY, NC (May 22, 2019) – The new Borealis Compounds plant, located in the Alexander Industrial Park, held a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday, May 16 with Borealis representatives, customers, and local officials in attendance. The company celebrated a hallmark in its global expansion efforts by declaring its new polypropylene (PP) compounding plant in Alexander County open for business. Following opening remarks and the ribbon cutting, attendees enjoyed plant tours and a BBQ lunch.
Austria-based Borealis is a leading provider of innovative solutions in the fields of polyolefins, base chemicals, and fertilizers. The 50,000 square foot facility, with rail siding in place, adds an initial 66 million pounds of capacity to strengthen Borealis’ and Borouge’s global supply capability for thermoplastic olefin (TPO) and short-glass fiber (SGF) compounds. Among the first compounds produced in the new facility are those used to make automotive interior and exterior parts for major OEM and Tier customers.
“Borealis has long been committed to the global automotive industry,” said Roland Janssen, Managing Director of Borealis North America. “Adding a compounding facility in North America helps drive our growth while also benefiting our customers through regional supply and product development capabilities.”
Alexander County Commission Chairman Jeff Peal, who was one of the guest speakers at the event, expressed his enthusiasm for the new Borealis plant.
“We’re excited for the growth and development brought to our county, and we look forward to a long-term relationship with our Borealis partners,” Peal said. “We’re really enthusiastic to have a major international network of businesses, providing services all over the world, right here in Alexander County, in Taylorsville. This grand opening is not only big for us, but this is big business and big news for Borealis, too, and for their model. We wish you the very best and look forward to great things as we proceed from here.”
David Icenhour, Executive Director for the Alexander County Economic Development Corporation, worked closely with Borealis on the project.
“The addition of Borealis Compounds to the Alexander Industrial Park is a testament to the many great qualities of this county. We can create world class sites with all the infrastructure in place to serve modern manufacturing, plus we have a workforce that is skilled in the art of manufacturing,” Icenhour stated. “Borealis had the financial means and expertise to place this manufacturing facility anywhere in the world. The fact that a company with more than 6,000 employees worldwide chose Alexander County should be a source of pride for all residents.”
The Alexander County plant is ideally located in the southeast region of North America to meet the growing needs of customers. Borealis worked diligently with state and local authorities in North Carolina to execute a brownfield investment with the possibility for further expansion that will benefit both the local economy and the automotive industry. In addition to compound manufacturing, the facility also features state-of-the-art, in-house testing and product development capabilities.
“The industry is further supported by an experienced commercial and technical team with representatives in both the southeast and the Detroit area,” continued Janssen. “The team is ready to introduce Borealis solutions and support customers in their technical implementation of new vehicle programs.”
Borealis has been supplying compounds from the new facility in Alexander County since February 2019.
For more information visit www.borealisgroup.com.
