Buna Werke

Buna Werke Schkopau was a major chemical manufacturing complex established at Schkopau near Halle (Saale) in central Germany. Its name derived from the production method for synthetic rubber: polymerising butadiene with sodium, whose chemical symbol is Na. The enterprise was created during the German drive for industrial self-sufficiency and reduced dependence on imported natural rubber. Its foundation stone was laid in April 1936, and industrial production of artificial rubber began in 1937. The works originated as Buna-Werke GmbH Schkopau, a subsidiary of Ammoniakwerk Merseburg GmbH, subsequently known as Leunawerke and controlled by the IG Farben conglomerate. Synthetic rubber was the site’s defining product, but the plant also manufactured polyvinyl chloride and a range of basic chemicals, including trichloroethylene, formaldehyde, tetrahydrofuran, acetic acid, acetone, and calcium carbide. A related facility, Hüls-Werke in Marl, began producing Buna rubber in 1939, expanding the synthetic-rubber capacity of the German chemical industry. The company’s wartime history is inseparable from the industrial system of Nazi Germany and IG Farben. A Buna-related plant was constructed near Auschwitz, with forced labourers and prisoners from the Monowitz concentration camp used in the surrounding industrial project. Monowitz was built on the factory grounds. The Auschwitz-area plant did not produce rubber during the war, and both it and the Schkopau works were attacked by American bombers in an effort to restrict supplies of fuel and strategic materials for the Wehrmacht. After 1945, several IG Farben officials were prosecuted at the Nuremberg trials for crimes connected with the conglomerate’s use of forced labour and concentration-camp prisoners. Following the Second World War, the Schkopau works were expropriated under Soviet administration and assigned to the Soviet joint-stock company SAG Kautschuk as part of reparations arrangements. They were later converted into a publicly owned enterprise, VEB Chemische Werke Buna, and became the central industrial site of Kombinat Chemische Werke Buna. In the German Democratic Republic, the complex was among the country’s largest industrial combines. At its peak it employed approximately 18,000 people and helped shape regional housing and transport policy. Halle-Neustadt was developed in large part to accommodate workers from the Buna and Leuna chemical plants, while suburban rail connections served employees commuting to the sites. The plant’s East German identity was expressed by the slogan “Plaste und Elaste aus Schkopau,” referring to rigid plastics and elastic synthetic materials. In 1958, Buna Werke became the world’s largest producer of calcium carbide. Its scale and aging technology also made it a major source of environmental pollution. The industrial and social importance of the complex therefore coexisted with substantial technological and ecological liabilities. After the political changes of 1989, the works were placed under the administration of Treuhandanstalt and subsequently the Bundesanstalt für vereinigungsbedingte Sonderaufgaben. Employment fell sharply, reaching approximately 7,200 workers in 1992. In 1995, Dow Chemical acquired large parts of the facilities but retained only a small proportion of the former workforce. Obsolete installations were demolished and the site underwent extensive remediation. In 2004, the modernized chemical operations were associated with Dow Olefinverbund GmbH, a Dow Chemical subsidiary, and shifted toward petroleum-based production and newer technologies. In 2021, the synthetic-rubber production plant was purchased by the Polish chemical company Synthos. The historical Buna Werke brand is therefore defunct as an independent enterprise, although parts of its industrial estate and production heritage continue through successor companies.

Buna Werke Schkopau developed within the German chemical industry's interwar search for substitutes for imported natural rubber. The designation Buna combined the central raw material, butadiene, with sodium, the catalyst used in the polymerisation process. The Schkopau project was established by Buna-Werke GmbH Schkopau, a subsidiary of Ammoniakwerk Merseburg GmbH, later called Leunawerke and associated with IG Farben. Construction began with the laying of the foundation stone in April 1936, and synthetic-rubber production started in 1937. The works were conceived as more than a rubber plant. They produced PVC and numerous basic chemicals, including trichloroethylene, formaldehyde, tetrahydrofuran, acetic acid, and acetone. A second Buna-rubber facility at Hüls near Marl began operating in 1939. These plants formed part of the chemical infrastructure supporting Nazi Germany's military and economic objectives. During the Second World War, a Buna-related project was built near Auschwitz. Forced labourers and prisoners from the Monowitz concentration camp were used in the industrial complex, and the camp itself was established on the factory grounds. The Auschwitz-area plant did not achieve rubber production during the war. The Schkopau and Auschwitz facilities were bombed by American forces because of their importance to fuel and strategic-material supplies for the German war effort. After the war, the forced-labour system connected with IG Farben became the subject of criminal proceedings, including prosecutions of company officials at Nuremberg. The Soviet occupation authorities expropriated the Schkopau works after 1945 and placed them within SAG Kautschuk, a Soviet joint-stock structure used in the reparations economy. The plant was subsequently reorganized as VEB Chemische Werke Buna and incorporated into Kombinat Chemische Werke Buna. Under the GDR, it became one of the country's most important industrial combines, employing about 18,000 people at its high point. The complex influenced the development of the surrounding region: new residential districts were built in Halle and Merseburg, and Halle-Neustadt was developed particularly to house workers from the Buna and Leuna plants. Rail links connected the industrial sites with commuter communities. The GDR-era slogan “Plaste und Elaste aus Schkopau” summarized the plant's identity as a producer of rigid plastics and elastic synthetic materials. In 1958, the works were reported to have become the world's largest producer of calcium carbide. Their importance came with serious costs. Much of the equipment was technologically outdated, and emissions from the large chemical complex contributed to severe environmental pollution. The site consequently represented both the productive capacity and the ecological burden of East German heavy industry. After the GDR's political transformation in 1989, Treuhandanstalt assumed responsibility for the works, followed by the Bundesanstalt für vereinigungsbedingte Sonderaufgaben. Employment contracted from the former combine's much larger workforce to about 7,200 employees in 1992. Dow Chemical acquired large portions of the site in 1995, while retaining far fewer employees than the former state enterprise. Obsolete facilities were dismantled and the contaminated or industrially affected land was rehabilitated. A 1999 estimate put the remediation expenses handled by the privatization authorities at 809 million Deutsche Mark for that year alone, although the figure should be understood as a historical estimate rather than current financial data. From 2004, the operating chemical works were associated with Dow Olefinverbund GmbH, a Dow Chemical subsidiary. Production shifted toward modern, petroleum-based chemical processes. The historic Buna Werke enterprise no longer exists as an independent company, but successor operations remain connected to the Schkopau chemical site. In 2021, Synthos acquired the synthetic-rubber plant, creating another ownership transition for one of the site's defining product areas.

1. 2021Synthos purchases the synthetic-rubber plant

   Synthos acquired the synthetic-rubber production plant at the former Buna site.

   Source
2. 2004Operations associated with Dow Olefinverbund

   The chemical works became part of Dow Olefinverbund GmbH and used modern, petroleum-based production technologies.

   Source
3. 1995Dow Chemical acquires major facilities

   Dow Chemical took over large parts of the site and began a substantial modernization and rationalization process.

   Source
4. 1992Employment falls sharply

   The works employed approximately 7,200 people during the restructuring period, far fewer than during the combine's peak.

   Source
5. 1989Transition to privatization administration

   Following political change in East Germany, the works came under Treuhandanstalt administration.

   Source
6. 1958Calcium-carbide production milestone

   Buna Werke became the world's largest producer of calcium carbide.

   Source
7. 1945Expropriation under Soviet administration

   After the war, the Schkopau works were expropriated and placed within SAG Kautschuk for the Soviet reparations system.

   Source
8. 1939Hüls begins Buna production

   The related Hüls-Werke facility at Marl began producing Buna rubber.

   Source
9. 1937Artificial-rubber production starts

   Schkopau began industrial production of Buna synthetic rubber.

   Source
10. 1936Construction begins at Schkopau

    The foundation stone was laid for the industrial Buna plant near Schkopau, developed to manufacture synthetic rubber and related chemicals.

    Source

A large-scale industrial chemical producer centered on synthetic rubber, plastics, and basic chemicals. During the East German period, the works were positioned as a strategically important national industrial combine and were associated with the slogan “Plaste und Elaste aus Schkopau.”

• Buna synthetic rubberSynthetic rubber1937

  Buna was the site's defining product and the source of its name. It was made through polymerisation of butadiene using sodium as a catalyst, providing an artificial substitute for natural rubber. Production began at Schkopau in 1937 and continued as a central part of the site's industrial identity through later ownership and organizational changes.

• Polyvinyl chloridePlastics

  PVC was among the plastics manufactured at the Schkopau works. It represented the rigid-material side of the site's East German slogan “Plaste und Elaste aus Schkopau,” which contrasted rigid plastics with elastic synthetic materials.

• Calcium carbideBasic chemicals

  Calcium carbide became an important product of the East German combine. In 1958, the Schkopau works were described as the world's largest producer of calcium carbide, demonstrating the scale of the site's chemical operations.

• Industrial basic chemicalsBasic chemicals

  The works produced a broad portfolio of chemical intermediates and solvents, including trichloroethylene, formaldehyde, tetrahydrofuran, acetic acid, and acetone. These materials supported the wider plastics, rubber, and chemical-manufacturing system rather than functioning as consumer-facing branded products.

• 2021Sell the synthetic-rubber production plantM&A

  The former Buna site had become a collection of successor operations rather than a single independent company.

  What changed. Polish chemical company Synthos purchased the synthetic-rubber production plant.

  Aftermath. Synthetic-rubber manufacturing at Schkopau continued under new ownership.

  Source
• 1995Privatize major portions of the former combineM&A

  After German reunification, the former state enterprise required restructuring, modernization, and environmental rehabilitation.

  What changed. Dow Chemical acquired large parts of the Schkopau facilities, while obsolete installations were dismantled.

  Aftermath. The site moved into a modernized successor-operator structure, with substantially reduced employment and extensive remediation.

  Estimated remediation expenses handled by the privatization authorities. 809 million Deutsche Mark (1999)

  Source
• 1945Transfer the works into the Soviet reparations economyStrategy

  Following Germany's defeat, the plant was expropriated under Soviet administration.

  What changed. The works were assigned to SAG Kautschuk and later reorganized as VEB Chemische Werke Buna within the East German state-industrial system.

  Aftermath. Buna became one of the largest industrial combines in the GDR and a major regional employer.

  Source
• 1936Build a domestic synthetic-rubber industryStrategy

  Germany sought to reduce reliance on imported natural rubber and develop strategic domestic substitutes.

  What changed. IG Farben's associated chemical organizations established the Buna works at Schkopau and began construction of an industrial synthetic-rubber plant.

  Aftermath. Production began in 1937, and the site expanded into plastics and basic chemicals.

  Source

• 1958Severe environmental pollution from outdated facilitiesControversy

  The aging production installations at Buna Werke caused substantial environmental pollution during the East German period. The environmental legacy later contributed to extensive demolition, remediation, and rehabilitation work after privatization.

  Source
• 1940Forced labour and Monowitz concentration-camp production systemControversy

  A Buna-related factory project near Auschwitz used forced labourers and prisoners from the Monowitz concentration camp, which was built on the factory grounds. The plant did not produce rubber during its wartime existence. The exploitation formed part of the broader criminal history of IG Farben and led to postwar prosecutions of company officials.

  Source

• 2021Synthetic-rubber plant sold to Synthos

  The synthetic-rubber production plant at the former Buna site was purchased by Polish chemical company Synthos.

  M&A
  Source
• 1995Dow Chemical acquires major parts of the Schkopau works

  Dow Chemical took over substantial portions of the former Buna facilities during the post-reunification privatization process.

  M&A
  Source
• 1958Buna Werke becomes a major East German industrial combine

  The Schkopau works became the world's largest producer of calcium carbide while operating within the publicly owned Kombinat Chemische Werke Buna.

  Product generation
  Source
• 1937Synthetic-rubber production begins at Schkopau

  Buna Werke began industrial production of artificial rubber, establishing the site as a major synthetic-materials producer.

  Product launch
  Source
• 1936Foundation stone laid for Buna Werke Schkopau

  Construction began at Schkopau on a major industrial plant intended to produce synthetic rubber and related chemicals for Germany's self-sufficiency program.

  Other
  Source

1. Buna Werke Schkopau