Situated in Marl, near Reckinghausen, in the Ruhr district, the Hüls chemical factory had its origins, in part, in the National Socialist policy of autarky, or self-sufficiency; it was built under pressure from the state to supply the Nazi war economy with Buna synthetic rubber. But more conventional business interests were also instrumental in shaping the plant: Chemical industrialists used criteria such as proximity to related plants, raw materials, coal, and transportation – in other words, factors that would ensure its long-term commercial viability – to decide on a site, though the National Socialist Government saw the site as vulnerable to air attack. Hüls was founded in 1938 and began operations in August 1940 as Germany's second major Buna producer, accounting for about 45 percent of Germany's total wartime synthetic-rubber output. I.G. Farbenindustrie A.G. owned 74 percent of the new company, and Hibernia, a mining company owned by the Prussian government, controlled the remaining 26 percent.

Because the I.G. was Hüls's principal owner and because of its heavy involvement in Buna production, the decision whether or not Hüls would continue to exist after 1945 proved complicated and difficult. Following the dictates of Allied trust-busting policy, the I.G. was disbanded, and Hüls became an independent corporation just after the war.