BASF will close one of its two ammonia plants at its home site in Ludwigshafen as well as the units producing caprolactam, as the firm by revenue struggles with high energy costs and plans increased production in China, it said.

• “All this has already hampered market growth in Europe in comparison with other regions. High energy prices are now putting an additional burden on profitability and competitiveness in Europe,” BASF chief executive Martin Brudermueller.
• Europe’s industry been facing some demand destruction since September 2021 amid high energy costs. BASF’s fertilizer facilities have been taken offline or curtailed output last year amid surging natural gas prices.
• Gas demand in the Europe Perimeter averaged 16% (4.3Bcm) below the 2016-2020 average in the first 20 days of February, with demand destruction coming in stronger than BNEF’s expectations and the weather on average milder than the 10-year seasonal norm.