Chemicals and specialty materials firm Celanese Corp. is launching a three-year project to increase the engineered materials compounding capacities of three of its plants in Asia, a company release announced Wednesday. The expansions are being initiated in response to growth in demand for compounded polymers.

“By continuing to increase our Asia presence in the engineered materials market, Celanese is adapting to local customer needs and gaining a competitive advantage in a complex and challenging environment,” Tom Kelly, senior vice president, Engineered Materials for Celanese, said in a statement. “Celanese is committed to expanding its leadership position in the region by increasing both compounding and polymer manufacturing capacities and capabilities through greater investments and additions in its Asia network.”

During the effort, the company will add 52KT of compounding and long-fiber thermoplastics (LFT) capacity to its integrated chemical complex in Nanjing, China by mid-2023 and add 7KT of nylon compounding capacity at its Suzhou, China facility in 2022. Celanese also intends to expand the annual compounding capacity of its plant in Silvassa, India by 7KT.

The company did not disclose the financial details of the project.

In January, Celanese revealed plans for a new liquid crystal polymer (LCP) polymerization facility in China to support growth in its Vectra and Zenite LCP product lines. A search for a location for the plant is underway.