History
1928 – Imperial Chemical Factory founded by world famous Hungarian engineer Kálmán Kandó operated on the site where BorsodChem is located today in the municipality of Berente.
1952 – Borsod Industrial Trust, Borsod Coke Works and Sajómenti Chemical Works are the legal predecessors of BVK.
July 3, 1954 – Borsod Chemical Complex was established by the merger of Borsod Industrial Trust, Borsod Coke Works and Sajómenti Chemical Works.
1955 – The fertiliser factory is completed having 110 t/day ammonia and 132 ktpa calcium nitrate capacity.
1958 – Following a temporary shutdown, the fertiliser factory was restarted and calcium nitrate was its only product with 25% nitrogen active agent content under the trademark AGRONIT.
1960 – The Chemical Works of Berente also merged into the company.
1963 – Olefin I program. A new company, Chemical Works of Berente was established to construct the new factory and Hungary’s first PVC plant was built with 6 ktpa PVC resin production capacity based on the technology of the Japanese Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. Ltd.
1963 – The mercury-pool cathode chlorine and hydrochloric acid plant was constructed.
1965 – The caprolactam plant of 6 ktpa capacity was built to serve polyamide production in Hungary.
1968 – BVK’s polyamide plant develops a product under the trademark BONAMID, which was utilised by the engineering industry and mining to substitute coloured metals.
1969 – Plastic shutters were produced at BVK’s own plastic- processing plant.
1969 – The production of proprietary chemical additives and plastic industry stabilisers was commenced.
1970 – BVK’s in-house PVC processing plant the Shutter Plant was launched.
1971 – Capacity expansion of PVC Plant up to 30 ktpa is completed.
1971 – In the company’s PVC profile manufacturing plant in Szekszárd plastic doors, partition wall elements and other profile products were manufactured with a capacity of 6,000 pieces of doors / year based on the licence of Covema, Italy.
1971 – As a result of the developments the double nitrogen content of the fertiliser SUPERNIT was doubled giving a considerable boost to agricultural production.
1971 – Profile expansion, the Carbide Factory of Tatabánya and the Plastics Processing Unit of Szekszárd were linked to the manufacturing unit of Kazincbarcika. The Plastics Processing Company of Miskolc also joined the company.
1975 – BVK’s plastics processing plant started, which dealt with the production of drain-pipes, plasticised PVC- profiles and rigid films. By this time nearly 50% of domestic plastics were produced by BVK.
1978 – Launch of the new PVC plant (PVC III) within the frame of the Olefin II program with a production capacity of 150 ktpa suspension PVC resin under the Japanese Shin-Etsu technology. The chloralkali electrolysis plant started its operation on the basis of the Italian De-Nora mercury-pool cathode process with a capacity of 110 ktpa.
1982 – PVC dry blend production started.
1983 – The company’s own Window Confection plant was started-up.
1984 – Phosgene plant start-up with a production capacity of 10 ktpa.
1984 – Launch of pharmaceutical raw material in the Triptamine plant.
1988 – Granulated fertiliser production begins.
1991 – Commencement of isocyanate production, the MDI plant is completed with an annual 25 kt initial capacity using the Japanese Mitsui Toatsu Chemicals Inc. technology.
1991 – The company’s privatisation ended and adopts the name of BorsodChem Public Limited Company.
1992 – Environment protection had a strategic importance and the Waste Treatment Plant was established.
1994 – The ISO 9002 Quality Assurance System was introduced.
1996 – BorsodChem shares were listed on the Budapest and London Stock Exchanges.
1998 – The ISO 140001 Environmental Management System was introduced.
2001– The isocyanate product portfolio is expanded by TDI, the TDI plant starts its operation with 60 kt capacity using the Mitsui Toatsu Chemicals, Inc. technology.
2001– The safety of energy supply and the increased energy demand of investments called for the establishment of a proprietary power plant. The handover of BC Power Plant takes place.
2004 – BorsodChem shares are listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
2006 – Permira investment group takes over BC’s ownership right and at the same time the company is delisted from the stock exchange.
2006. – The De-Nora mercury-pool cathode process is supplemented by the membrane-cell process of Chlorine Engineers (Mitsui subsidiary) with a capacity of 120 ktpa, which enables PVC capacity expansion.
2006 – Commissioning the 120 ktpa capacity membrane-cell chlorine plant as per Chlorine Engineers licence.
2007 – TDI-2 new TDI investment was launched with a planned capacity of 160 ktpa based on proprietary technology.
2007 – A new nitric acid plant investment commenced with a capacity of 200,000 t/year. The weak nitric acid plant is constructed on the basis of Grande Parroise (GPN), while the concentrated nitric acid plant is constructed as per Plinke’s licence.
2008 – Sinergy Energy Supply Plc. started the implementation of a new steam producing plant with a nominal capacity of 110 t/hour.
BVK-BorsodChem directors and chief executive officers:
1954-1955 József Szabó
1956-1957 Sándor Nagy Gór
1957-1963 László Sütő
1963-1971 István Szántó
1971-1980 István Körtvélyes
1981-1991 Dr Lajos Tolnai
1991-2006 László F. Kovács
2006-2008 Kay Gugler
2008-Dr Wolfgang Büchele