PolyOne acquired ColorMatrix for USD 486 million

(PlasticsToday) -- PolyOne Corp. acquired ColorMatrix for USD 486 million in a move the company says will not only accelerate its specialization strategy, but also expand its geographic presence in Asia and Brazil, while creating an entry point into Russia. Likening the move to its 2008 acquisition of custom elastomer supplier GLS, Stephen D. Newlin, PolyOne's chairman, president and CEO, called the purchase of ColorMatrix, which had sales of USD 196.8 million for the year ended in June, a "game-changer."

ColorMatrix, which itself acquired custom silicone firm Gayson in April, is a supplier of specialty additives, liquid colorant and dosing technologies. Within packaging, its products are used to increase product shelf life, preserve taste and improve recyclability. In fluoropolymers, it supplies colorant and specialty additives that provide lubricity, high-level heat insulation, static dissipation and x-ray opaqueness. ColorMatrix's Gayson acquisition provided custom color dispersions used in silicone processing for a range of medical, consumer and automotive applications.

MRC

(MRC) -- In August PET granulate imports to Ukraine dropped by 8.5 KT and made nearly 18 KT. In general, the summer period proved to be quite successful for the Ukrainian converters, as the demand for preforms, on average, increased by 5%, according to MRC DataScope.

By the end of the season, business activity traditionally slows down, which directly affects imports of the material. Nevertheless, following the summer results, PET consumption in the Ukrainian market slightly grew and made 56.5 KT, compared to 54 KT in 2010. With autumn coming, demand for PET bottles reduced under the pressure of a seasonal factor. In September, a further decline in PET granulate imports is expected. Actual feedstock inventories of trade companies also reduce need in feedstock purchases in the foreign markets.

PET supplies from China and the UAE fell nearly by twice. In August, supplies from China's Jiangsu Sanfangxiang decreased ten times down and made 500 tons. Shanghai Hengyi Polyester and Zhejiang Wankai also reduced granulate shipments to Ukraine.Their total imports made nearly 3 KT. At the same time, as per MRC analyst Igor Grischenko, South Korean producers Daewoo and Samsung Total resumed their supplies in August.


MRC

(ICIS) -- Chemical companies must raise their efforts to promote a positive image of the industry and highlight the importance of chemistry, European Petrochemical Association (EPCA) delegates were told on Monday. In his opening address, EPCA president Tom Crotty urged a record 2,500 delegates at the 45th annual EPCA meeting to emphasise the important contribution of the chemical industry and endeavour to raise public awareness.

⌠Nothing in our modern world could exist without the ingenuity of chemists and chemical engineers. So why don't people celebrate this? I think to a degree we've only got ourselves to blame, said Crotty, a board member of Switzerland-headquartered INEOS.


The theme of the event was that more than 95% of the products used in everyday life rely on the chemical industry, whether it is in food, clothing, healthcare, transportation, communication, education or entertainment, he said.


MRC

(Arabian oil and gas) -- Saudi Kayan Petrochemical has started the commercial production at its petrochemical complex in Jubail Industrial City. The company said that main plants have started production, including the olefins plant, which produces 1.478m t/y of ethyelen and 630 KTa of propylene, in addition to an aromatics plan with a capacity of 109 KTa of benzene.

In addition, the company also started the commercial production of the 350 KTa polypropylene plant, 400 KTa polyethylene plant and the 260 KTa polycarbonate plant.

Mutlaq Hamad Al-Morished, chairman of Saudi Kayan and vice president of SABIC, corporate finance, said that the financial impact of the start of the commercial production will appear in the fourth quarter's financial results.

MRC

(Arabian oil and gas) -- Alujain Corporation has announced that a technical defect in the dehydrogenation unit in polypropylene complex owned by ALCO's subsidiary National Company for Petrochemical Industries (NATPET), has caused a shutdown of the facility. ⌠The work is underway to repair that defect and the production is expected to return in two weeks, the company said in a statement. ⌠This will cause the company a net loss of USD 24m equal to the production of 16 KT of polypropylene in that period, the statement added.

This is the third time this year that the company has faced technical issues. The company also announced earlier this year that its polypropylene plant faced a technical problem at the dehydrogenation unit on the 18th of January, with repair work taking five days. As a consequence of this shutdown, NatPet failed to produce 3,5 KT of polypropylene worth USD 5 million.

MRC