CHARLESTON, Tenn. – Wacker’s chief executive said today that the chemical company has begun engineering studies related to construction of another plant adjacent to its $2.5 billion polysilicon factory that it officially opened.
Dr. Rudolf Staudigl, CEO of the Germany-based chemical giant, said that building a pyrogenic silica factory here would be “the next logical step.”
Pyrogenic silica is used as a filler in silicone elastomer and as a viscosity-adjusting agent in coatings, printing inks and adhesives. It also serves as a flow aid in the cosmetics, pharmaceutical and food-processing industries.
Staudigl said a pyrogenic silica plant could cost about $150 million. It would employ about 50 more employees above the 650 at the polysilicon plant.
“Generally speaking, Charleston offers the necessary conditions to extend our integrated production system with a pyrogenic silica facility,” he said during a grand opening event for the polysilicon factory that makes the raw material that goes into solar power panels.