South Korean chemical producer Hyosung TNC, a subsidiary of Hyosung Group, has begun production of bio-based 1,4-butanediol (bio-BDO) at its site near Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, with a capacity of 50,000 t/yr.
The site will be supplied with Brazilian sugarcane as a feedstock and uses fermentation technology from US company Geno, the company announced in a LinkedIn post on 16 May. Bio-BDO is chemically identical to fossil-fuel based BDO and can be easily substituted.
BDO is used in the production of polyurethanes, as a chain-extender for some methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) systems and as an intermediate chemical for polyester polyols. It is also used in the manufacture of medicines, including antibiotics. The company noted that the 50,000 t/yr plant can be scaled up to 200,000 t/yr based on demand for bio-based intermediates. But the company has not specified how it plans to achieve this.
The opening of the site follows bio-based chemical producer Qore, a joint venture between US firm Cargill and German operation Helm, opening its 66,000 t/yr bio-BDO site in Iowa, US, in July 2025. The Qore plant uses dent corn as a feedstock.
The European Commission (EC) implemented anti-dumping duties on imports of both bio-based and fossil-fuel based BDO in February 2026 from the US, China and Saudi Arabia. There are currently no EU anti-dumping duties on imports of Vietnamese BDO.
