ABS: Production
How China took over from Korea and Taiwan
What this tab covers Who makes it and how much: world capacity and output, utilisation, the top producing countries and companies globally and in India, concentration, new capacity coming, and each region's position.| Measure | Figure | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| World capacity | about 15-16 Mt/yr world (indicative); China about 8-10 Mt/yr by 2025 (indicative) | indicative (basis: GlobalData Oct 2023 additions on a pre-2023 base); not published in sources reached | |
| World output | about 10 Mt (2024, indicative) | indicative | |
| Capacity utilisation | about 65% (indicative) | Rapid Chinese additions since 2021 pushed rates down. Korean and Taiwanese exporters, long the main suppliers to China, lost share as China's self-sufficiency rose (indicative). | indicative |
| Concentration | China about 55%; top three countries about 75% (indicative) | Leaders include LG Chem, Chimei, INEOS Styrolution, Zhejiang Petrochemical, Lotte Chemical, SABIC and Formosa. Company capacities are not consistently published. | indicative; GlobalData Oct 2023 |
| New capacity | China 4.43 Mt/yr from ten projects to 2027 (GlobalData) | Named projects: ZPC Daishan plant 2 1.2 Mt/yr (2027), INEOS Styrolution Ningbo 0.6 Mt/yr (planned 2023), Shandong Yulong Longkou 0.6 Mt/yr (2024) and Guangxi Changke Fangchenggang 0.5 Mt/yr (2025). Delivery dates may have slipped; status after 2023 not confirmed in sources reached. | GlobalData, Oct 2023 |
Top producing countries
China 55% · about 8-10 Mt/yr (indicative) South Korea 12% · about 2 Mt/yr, mainly LG Chem and Lotte Chemical (indicative) Taiwan 9% · about 1.4 Mt/yr, mainly Chimei and Formosa (indicative) Western Europe 5% · about 0.8 Mt/yr (indicative) United States 4% · about 0.6 Mt/yr (indicative) Southeast Asia and Japan 8% · Thailand, Malaysia and Japan (indicative) indicative; GlobalData Oct 2023 for 4.43 Mt/yr of additions; indicativeLargest producers: global
| Company | Country | Volume | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LG Chem widely cited as the largest ABS maker, about 2 Mt/yr including China (indicative) | South Korea | not published | 2025 | not published in sources reached |
| Chimei Corporation Tainan and Zhangzhou; long the largest single-site producer (indicative) | Taiwan | not published | 2025 | not published in sources reached |
| INEOS Styrolution also runs plants in Europe, the US, Korea and India | Germany / UK | 0.6 Mt/yr new Ningbo plant | 2023 (planned start) | GlobalData, Oct 2023 |
| Zhejiang Petrochemical (ZPC, Rongsheng) integrated with its own styrene, acrylonitrile and butadiene | China | 1.2 Mt/yr Daishan ABS plant 2 (announced) | 2027 | GlobalData, Oct 2023 |
| Shandong Yulong Petrochemical | China | 0.6 Mt/yr Longkou ABS plant (planned) | 2024 | GlobalData, Oct 2023 |
| Guangxi Changke New Material | China | 0.5 Mt/yr Fangchenggang ABS plant (announced) | 2025 | GlobalData, Oct 2023 |
| Lotte Chemical Yeosu and Uiwang | South Korea | not published | 2025 | not published in sources reached |
Largest producers: India
| Company | Country | Volume | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| INEOS Styrolution India Gujarat plants; also polystyrene | India | not published | 2025 | not published in sources reached |
| Bhansali Engineering Polymers listed ABS and SAN maker in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh (indicative) | India | not published | 2025 | not published in sources reached |
India has two established ABS producers, INEOS Styrolution India and Bhansali Engineering Polymers, and imports a large part of its demand from Korea, Taiwan and China (indicative). India makes no styrene, so its ABS makers import their main monomer (styrene tile).
Position by region
| Region | Position |
|---|---|
| US | Small producer; drain-pipe and auto demand; imports from Asia and Mexico (indicative). |
| EU | High-cost naphtha monomers; INEOS Styrolution and Trinseo face Chinese and Korean competition (indicative). |
| India | Two domestic producers plus imports; fully import-dependent for styrene. |
| China | Shifted from the largest importer to near self-sufficiency as about 4.4 Mt/yr was added (GlobalData). |
| Japan | Mature producer; specialty grades. |
| Middle East | SABIC makes ABS with integrated monomers; also a key styrene exporter (styrene tile). |