This article has been updated here.
Firefighters have extinguished a fire that broke out at BASF’s chemical plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany.
The fire followed an explosion in the southern part of the site on Monday at around 12 noon after an organic solvent leakage, BASF said in a statement.
According to local police reports, 18 people suffered slight injuries, including seven firefighters. BASF said 15 employees were examined at its medical centre and were discharged without having to go to hospital.
The cause of the solvent leakage is under investigation by local authorities and there are currently no updates.
BASF said the fire was controlled within 45 minutes. Despite detecting slightly elevated levels of hydrocarbons inside the factory premises and surrounding area, BASF said there is no danger to the Ludwigshafen population. The company later said in another statement that there is no contamination of the air, water or soil.
The German chemical giant has shut down production at its flagship site, which it said is in safe condition.
BASF did not disclose exactly which production site was affected. The Ludwigshafen plant covers an area of approximately 10 square kilometres and includes plastics and basic chemicals production, alongside many other chemical products.
Shares in the company fell by 2.8% during the afternoon of July 29 but have since slightly recovered, despite still trailing behind values recorded on July 28.
Last year, BASF announced it would shut down a number of production facilities at Ludwigshafen, following a major cost-cutting programme in Europe. The stringent measures are in response to a significant business decline at BASF, amid a challenging trading environment, linked to the war in Ukraine and in particular increased raw material and energy prices.
This article has been updated here.