German specialty chemicals giant Evonik officially opened a 500 million euro (S$806.26 million) production facility on Jurong Island on Tuesday, its largest methionine plant in the world.

The facility, which is also the company's largest investment in a single chemical project, will produce 150,000 metric tons of methionine, an amino acid used in animal feed.

The new production complex, the company's first such plant in Asia, will create about 200 highly-skilled jobs here.

The facility will bring Evonik closer to its customers in Asia, where demand for meat, eggs and poultry - and by extension methionine - is rising, said Dr Reiner Beste, the head of Evonik's health and nutrition business unit.

Evonik has a presence in more than 100 countries and empploys 33,500 people worldwide. Singapore is its regional headquarters in South-east Asia.

The company generated sales of almost 13 billion euros last year, of which about 20 per cent was contributed by Asia.