Technip Energies (Nanterre, France) announces that OCIKUMHO, a joint venture between OCIM (Kuching, Malaysia) and Kumho P&B Chemicals (Seoul, South Korea) has signed a license agreement for a 100,000 tonnes/a EPICEROL® plant for the production of epichlorohydrin (ECH) from glycerine.

ECH is a compound mainly used to produce epoxy resins. Its main applications serve the clean energy market, such as wind, solar, tidal, and electricity transmission, providing corrosion protection coatings. It is also used in the industrial, automotive, and packaging industries and as composites in the aerospace industry.

Using a biobased raw material, Ocikumho’s unit will be integrated into a new processing complex using electricity made by hydro power, in Sarawak, Malaysia to serve the growing ECH market. Ocikumho will be the first to manufacture epichlorohydrin in Malaysia.

Bhaskar Patel, Senior Vice President Sustainable Fuels, Chemicals and Circularity, commented: “Epicerol offers a cost-effective process with a reduced carbon footprint compared to traditional propylene-based ECH. This breakthrough technology produces no waste water, fewer emissions, effluents, and harmful by-products, making it one of the most environmentally friendly processes possible”.

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