Cabot Corporation announced in a statement today the start-up of China's first fumed silica manufacturing facility located in Jiangxi Province, China. The facility is a project of Cabot Bluestar Chemical (Jiangxi) Company Ltd., a joint venture between a Cabot subsidiary, Cabot (China) Limited, and Bluestar New Chemical Materials Co., Ltd., a member of the ChemChina Group. Cabot Bluestar Chemical (Jiangxi) Company Ltd. invested approximately US$27 million to construct the plant with an annual capacity of 4,800 metric tons. The new facility is designed to primarily serve the growing fumed silica market in China. Cabot Chairman and CEO Kennett F. Burnes said, "The adoption of fumed silica in industrial applications in China is growing rapidly. We are confident that with the successful commissioning of our new facility, we are well-positioned to meet the needs of our customers in China by providing high quality product in a timely manner."