Cariflex expands in Singapore with $350 million investment

SINGAPORE—Cariflex Pte. Ltd., one of the world's largest suppliers of polyisoprene rubber latex, has announced a $350 million expansion that will double its global capacity.

The decision to build anew on a 6.1-hectare site in Jurong Island is strategic, the company said, as it brings Cariflex closer to its Southeast Asian customers who manufacture surgical gloves, condoms, and other medical and consumer products.

The investment and expected capacity expansion are the largest in the company's history, coming on the heels of a $50 million investment in a Brazilian production site.

The plant will be the first polyisoprene latex production facility in Singapore, according to Cariflex.

"We are strategically locating our new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility here in Singapore, at the doorstep of our key customers," said Cariflex CEO Prakash Kolluri. "We value Singapore not only for its ability to foster a thriving financial hub, but also for its dedication to develop innovation, trade and logistical hubs."

The plant will be completed in phases and is expected to be operational by the end of 2024. At least 70 initial jobs will be created, including positions in engineering, production, quality, supply chain and manufacturing support. There are expected to be more than 1,500 workers on site during the peak of construction.

Kolluri said Cariflex will leverage the "highly educated and skilled" work force, as well as the country's political stability to protect its intellectual property rights.

"Additionally, the Jurong Island ecosystem, with all of the existing infrastructure and services as well as support from Singapore's Economic Development Board and other government agencies, gave us confidence in our investment decision in Singapore," Kolluri said.

Cariflex markets its synthetic, water-based polymer latex under the brand name Cariflex IR Latex. In its applications for condoms and gloves, the material is a suitable alternative to natural rubber latex, the company said.

"This will also continue to strengthen Cariflex's position as the No. 1 supplier of polyisoprene latex with unmatched quality and diversity of supply sources," said Jong-Hyun Kim, CEO of DL Chemical Co., Ltd., parent company to Cariflex.

Cariflex, based in Singapore, also manufactures isoprene rubber, which the company sells to medical and footwear customers.

"The Singapore plant is expected to increase our global polyisoprene latex production capacity by over 50 percent," said Kolluri. "This project preserves and maintains our polyisoprene latex market leading position in terms of combined capacity, number of locations and production lines to deliver the best-in-class consistent product quality."

Over the last 20 years, Cariflex has placed a focus on debottlenecking and expanding capacity to meet skyrocketing demand, especially in medical, in the synthetic latex space.

In addition to expansions in Singapore and Brazil ($50 million at the Paulinia Facility in 2021), Cariflex has increased capacity in Himeji, Japan, as well.

Cariflex said its capital investment in Singapore is supported by Singapore's Economic Development Board and Ministry of Trade and Industry, including its JTC board.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has accentuated the importance of supply chain resiliency," said Tan Kong Hwee, executive vice president of the EDB. "Thus, we are delighted that Cariflex chose Singapore for the world's largest polyisoprene latex plant, which will be supplying high-quality materials to the region, for the production of surgical gloves sold globally.

"This underscores Singapore's value as a resilient and key supply chain node to serve health care and hygiene markets in Asia."

JTC Assistant CEO Alvin Tan said Jurong Island's "plug-and-play" infrastructure and integrated ecosystem will complement the new Cariflex facility.

"This allows companies to focus key investments on core facilities, while leveraging ... shared third-party utilities and services," Tan said.