(Dow) -- The Dow Chemical Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Dow Europe GmbH, and Aksa Akrilik Kimya Sanayii A.S. (Aksa) announced a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the intent to form a joint venture to manufacture and globally commercialize carbon fiber and derivatives.
Through this agreement, both companies will work together to explore opportunities to create fully-integrated production facilities for the manufacture and global supply of carbon fibers and derivatives. The companies will examine opportunities to develop and market a broad range of products and technical service offerings in the carbon fiber-based composites industry.
⌠This new partnership with Aksa is another example of how Dow continues to advance its innovation agenda and broaden our down-stream, integrated solutions offering, said Dow Chairman and CEO Andrew N. Liveris. ⌠Together, Aksa and Dow will apply science, world-class manufacturing capabilities and technical expertise to deliver innovative solutions that address some of the world's most pressing challenges such as increasing the energy capture of wind turbines, improving the fuel economy of automobiles, and extending the life of roads and buildings.
Very strong and lightweight, carbon-fiber based materials are used in a variety of applications in many growth industries, such as wind energy, transportation, and infrastructure, where weight savings, durability and energy efficiency are key performance factors.
MRC