Huntsman Corp. has purchased the Baroda, India unit of Metrochem Industries Ltd., a manufacturing facility for the production of intermediates and specialty products for textiles. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.With 700 employees and contractors, the Baroda unit has current annual sales of approximately 2.4 billion rupees ($49 million).

“This acquisition is a major milestone in our strategy. With this move we are realigning our manufacturing footprint towards Asia, the region that will fuel our growth in the years to come,” said Paul Hulme, president of Huntsman’s Textile Effects division.

The site in Baroda is the second largest (after Basel, Switzerland) within the Huntsman Textile Effects division and has potential for further expansion, especially in the fields of specialty dyes and key intermediates needed for the production of dyes in India and other TE plants. The integration of the Baroda site with Huntsman’s existing manufacturing sites in Qingdao and Panyu, China as well as Mahachai, Thailand, will mark a decisive step in making Asia the principal hub of Huntsman’s Textile Effects division and the main manufacturing platform to support the future of the technical textiles industry in the region and ensure our long term global competitiveness.

Huntsman’s Textile Effects division also recently unveiled its new business structure, designed to focus on selected market segments and shifting its center of business to Asia. An important component of the new structure is the recently announced move of the division’s global headquarters from Basel to Singapore.