HONG KONG/LUDWIGSHAFEN, Germany – BASF is implementing a series of measures within its Performance Products segment to strengthen its competitiveness. As part of its long-term pigment strategy, the company announced plans to eliminate approximately 650 positions globally by 2017. At the same time, the company is investing €250 million over the next four years in its production network and in research and development.

The company plans to close its Paisley plant in Scotland and restructure its Huningue plant in France. In addition, BASF is examining strategic options for the site in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

In Asia Pacific, the company plans the start-up and expansion of a plant for high-performance pigments at BASF’s wholly-owned production site in Nanjing , China, and the expansion of the BASF pigments plant in Ulsan, Korea.