According to BASF, Force Majeure for ecoflex® and ecovio® lifted after removal of remaining contamination, however inventories are still low.
On April 3, 2018, BASF was able to remove the remaining amounts of contamination from the ecoflex plant. The contamination has led to a longer plant shut down and declaration of Force Majeure for the products ecoflex® and ecovio® last fall. BASF now lifts the Force Majeure for these two products with immediate effect. As inventory levels are still very low, incoming orders cannot be fulfilled at the requested time in every case.
On October 13, 2017, BASF detected a technical flaw in the ecoflex plant at its Ludwigshafen site. Due to a defect in the heating circuit of the plant, a small amount of a thermal oil has entered the production process. To repair the defect, the plant was shut down. In addition to ecoflex®, the derived product ecovio® was also impacted. For this reason, BASF declared Force Majeure for the compostable bio-plastics ecoflex® and ecovio®.
ecoflex® is the first compostable polymer of BASF on a fossil basis and is on the market for more than a quarter century.
Compared to conventional plastics, ecoflex® offers a decisive benefit: certified compostability. ecoflex® is an innovative pioneer in the field of biodegradable polymers, being an important raw material for many compostable and biobased plastics.
ecoflex® is:
the ideal blend component for bioplastics
certified compostable
elastic as well as water and tear-resistant
processable on conventional blown film plants
(for polyethylene)
printable and weldable
suitable for food contact
ecovio® is a compostable polymers with biobased content. it is a high-quality and versatile bioplastic of BASF. The primary advantages it’s certified compostable and contains biobased content.
ecovio®:
is a finished compound
certified compostable worldwide
has a variable biobased content
is printable and weldable
The main areas of use for ecovio® are plastic films such as organic waste bags, dual-use bags (first for shopping, then for organic waste) or agricultural films. Furthermore, compostable packaging solutions such as paper-coating, shrink films, foam packaging and injection molding products can be produced with ecovio®.
About BASF
At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The more than 115,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals, Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions, Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of €64.5 billion in 2017. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (BAS). Further information at www.basf.com.
