Umicore announces plans to consolidate automotive catalyst production in Germany and expand activities in Poland

Umicore today announced plans to consolidate its German production of automotive catalysts at one dedicated facility. The Company currently operates two automotive catalyst production facilities in Germany – one in Rheinfelden (Baden-Württemburg) and a newer facility in Bad Säckingen some 15 km away. The intention is to transfer the production at the Rheinfelden plant to Bad Säckingen over a period of three years.

The Bad Säckingen site offers specific advantages with regards to its ability to cater for future growth. The proximity of the two plants means that part of the 300 employees currently employed at the Rheinfelden plant will be eligible to transfer to the expanded Bad Säckingen facility.

Umicore also intends to increase production capacity at its newly-commissioned Nowa Ruda plant in Poland. The introduction of new emission regulations in Europe requires a broader range of ever more technologically advanced products such as gasoline particulate filters (GPF), lean NOx traps, selective catalytic reduction (SCR) and advanced three-way catalysts (TWC). The adapted and expanded production configuration in Germany and Poland will support Umicore in meeting this demand in the optimum way.

Within the next three years Umicore’s automotive catalyst production footprint in Europe is therefore expected to consist of three plants focused on emission control in light duty vehicles (Bad Säckingen, Germany; Nowa Ruda, Poland; Karlskoga, Sweden) as well as a dedicated operation in Florange, France, for catalysts mainly used in heavy duty diesel vehicles.