Tessenderlo swings to loss on fertilizer demand drop

(reuters) -- Belgian chemicals and plastics group Tessenderlo swung to an unexpected fourth-quarter net loss due to a sharp drop in demand for fertilizers in recession-hit southern Europe and tight raw material supplies at its gelatin unit.

Its shares fell as much as 8.8 percent on Thursday, making them the weakest performers on the Euronext Brussels Midcap Index.

Tessenderlo said it had experienced a sharp decline in demand for potassium sulfate fertilizers in the Mediterranean region and that margins came under pressure due to higher raw material costs.

That offset a rise in profit at its Kerley unit which makes chemicals for the agriculture and mining industries.

Economic output data on Wednesday highlighted the gap between the wealthy nations of northern Europe and those of the poorer south which includes countries such as Greece and Italy at the heart of the region's debt crisis.

The Gelatin and Akiolis unit, whose main customers are the food and pharmaceuticals industries, posted lower sales due to tighter raw materials availability.

The group net loss was 8.6 million euros (USD11.2 million) compared with a forecast net profit of 1.43 million in a Reuters poll of analysts.

Tessenderlo said it was cautious about 2012, which would be a year of transition.

Recurring operating profit for the fourth quarter was 1 million euros (USD1.31 million), below the 7.28 million expected in the Reuters poll of four analysts.

It was also below an earlier outlook, when the group forecast fourth-quarter operating results in line with the same period last year, which would have been EUR4.4mln at recurring operating profit level.

MRC

(specialchem4adhesives) -- The Lubrizol Corporation announces a new low density hydrophobic thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) technology for medical and healthcare applications. The company launches the product at the 2012 Medical Design & Manufacturing show in Anaheim, CA.

This new hydrophobic Tecothane≥ Soft technology eliminates the need for plasticizers to produce softer grades of material. In addition, these TPUs exhibit relatively low tack with use of significantly reduced amounts of lubricant.

Deb Langer, general manager - life science polymers, explains, "Our unique soft TPU polymer can be utilized in areas where silicones are traditionally required. The Tecothane Soft polymer technology may be extruded or injected molded utilizing traditional processing equipment. Techothane Soft's unique features provide performance for the designer while maintaining comfort for the patient."

The Lubrizol Corporation, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is an innovative specialty chemical company that produces and supplies technologies to customers in the global transportation, industrial and consumer markets. These technologies include lubricant additives for engine oils, other transportation-related fluids and industrial lubricants, as well as fuel additives for gasoline and diesel fuel. In addition, Lubrizol makes ingredients and additives for personal care products and pharmaceuticals; specialty materials, including plastics technology and performance coatings in the form of specialty resins and additives. Lubrizol's industry-leading technologies in additives, ingredients and compounds enhance the quality, performance and value of customers' products, while reducing their environmental impact.

MRC

(process-worldwide) -- Lanxess is expanding cresol production at its Leverkusen site once again. The specialty chemicals company plans to further increase capacity for this high-quality intermediate for the global market by some 20 percent by mid 2013.

⌠This investment of around EUR20 million in extending this facility is another clear statement by Lanxess highlighting the company's commitment to Germany and North Rhine-Westphalia as an industrial location, said Werner Breuers, member of the board of management of Lanxess. ⌠We expect sustainable market growth with cresols and have aligned our long-term planning to this. Among other applications, cresols are widely used in the manufacture of vitamin E, resins and flame retardants and in the agrochemicals sector.

MRC

(plasteurope) -- OKW Enclosures (Bridgeville, Pennsylvania / USA) has extended its product range by offering all standard plastic enclosures for OEM electronics equipment manufacturers in ⌠Biograde C7500 plastic produced by bioplastics compounding specialist FKuR (Willich / Germany). The company, the North American subsidiary of OKW Gehausesysteme (Buchen / Germany), specified the biodegradable material, a polymer blend based on cellulose acetate, as it is obtained from almost 100% renewable raw materials - in this case, cotton or wood.

OKW said that for indoor applications there are no restrictions to the life cycle of the enclosure - heat distortion temperature is up to 123╟C and customer-specific colouring is available through the use of 15 natural dyes.

MRC

(basf) -- BASF announced that it has acquired Ovonic Battery Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Energy Conversion Devices Inc. Based in Rochester Hills, Mich., Ovonic is the global leader in Nickel-Metalhydride (NiMH) battery technology, including the production of cathode active materials (CAMs) for this battery type. The company also has a battery materials research facility in Troy, Mich.


Ovonic is the inventor of the NiMH technology as it is used today, and has a patent portfolio of 97 U.S. and international patents and patent applications in this field. All major producers of NiMH batteries are currently working under license from Ovonic.


As part of BASF, Ovonic will be managed under BASF's new global business unit ⌠Battery Materials, which was launched on Jan. 1, 2012, to integrate the company's current and future battery materials-related activities within a single operating unit managed by its Catalysts division, based in Iselin, N.J. ⌠Our acquisition of Ovonic provides BASF with an immediate leadership position in NiMH battery technology, as well as long-established commercial relationships with the world's major battery manufacturers, said Ralf Meixner, Senior Vice President of BASF's Battery Materials business.

MRC