[THE INVESTOR] Hanwha Total Petrochemicals, a 50:50 joint venture of Hanwha Group and Total, on July 12 said it has increased its annual output of para-xylene by 200,000 tons.

The second plant in Daesan, some 120 kilometers south of Seoul, will have an annual capacity of 1.2 million tons of PXY.

When the output from its first plant in Daesan is combined, annual production of PXY will hit 1.9 million tons, according to Hanwha Total.

The JV has spent a total of 133 billion won (US$117 million) to increase output.

By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)