Eastman Chemical to sell PET business and related assets for US$600 mln

(Plastemart) -- Eastman Chemical Co. has agreed to sell its polyethylene terephthalate (PET) business and related assets of its performance polymers unit to DAK Americas LLC for about US$600 million in cash.

Since April, Eastman has sold off parts of it, and has been considering strategic alternatives, including a possible sale of the rest of the unit on which the company has been losing money over the past several years.

DAK Americas will acquire 3 plants in South Carolina, with a capacity to produce 1.275 million tpa of PET and PTA combined, as well as intellectual property of Eastman's proprietary "Integrex" technology.

The sale does not include any of Eastman's PET assets in Kingsport, TN or Rochester NY, which are integrated with its other chemicals and fibers business.

The transaction is expected to close in Q4-2010, subject to regulatory approvals. Eastman expects to book a "modest" gain from the sale, adding the deal is also unlikely to impact on product lines in the company's specialty plastics segment.

MRC

(ICIS) -- India's Reliance Industries is on track with its plans for two new worldscale purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plants and investments in paraxylene (PX), polyester and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a source close to the company said on Tuesday.

⌠The first PTA plant of 1.1m tonnes/year at Dahej, Gujarat, is scheduled to start up in the first quarter of 2013, and the second one will start 6-12 months later, he said.

Invista would supply technology for the first plant, which would have a single reactor, while Reliance was still evaluating technology options for the second plant, he added.

The new PTA volumes would feed the company's downstream polyester investments at Silvassa, Gujarat, which included a 560,000 tonne/year PET plant and a 360,000 tonne/year partially oriented yarn (POY) unit, he said.

The POY project was already under implementation and should be completed in the next two years while the PET plant would be commissioned in the first quarter of 2013, the source added.

MRC

(China Plastic & Rubber Journal) -- ExxonMobil Chemical's Vistamaxx propylene-based elastomer has been approved for food contact applications, such as flexible and rigid food packaging, by the Japan Hygienic Olefin and Styrene Plastics Association (JHOSPA).

Based on ExxonMobil Chemical's proprietary Exxpol metallocene technology, Vistamaxx propylene-based elastomer offers a unique combination of high elasticity, softness, toughness, flexibility and clarity.

The elastomer can be used as a blend partner to modify the polymer properties to meet the needs of the application in which it is being used. A lower density alternative to PET, PC and PVC, it can be used for downgauging, reducing part thickness and weight.

The grades, used in compounding and films, are already compliant with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the Food Contact Notification process.

MRC

(Plastics Today) -- Indian-based blown-film and sheet-extrusion supplier, Rajoo Engineers Ltd. (Rajkot) has expanded its geographic and technology reach with the announcement of collaborative agreements with Italian pipe/profile extruder supplier Bausano & Figli S.p.a (Rivarolo Canavese) and German film extruder technology supplier Hosokawa Alpine Aktiengesellschaft (Augsburg).

Rajoo and Bausano will form Rajoo Bausano Extrusion Pvt. Ltd., with operations to commence in 2011, supplying pipe and profile lines, including wood plastic composite technology, in India, Africa, and South Asia from Rajkot.

Rajoo and Hosokawa Alpine have agreed to cooperate on international marketing, production, and procurement, as well as in joint product development in their shared blown-film technology offerings.

MRC

(Plastics News) -- PET blow molder Constar International Inc. on Oct. 25 named George Caplea executive vice president of global business development, and announced that Joseph Bione of Whitehall Group LLC, will be consulting with the company as acting executive vice president of operations.

Both report directly to Grant Beard, the Philadelphia-based company's president and CEO.

Headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, Constar International is among the world's leading suppliers of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic containers. A pioneer in the PET bottle business, Constar began manufacturing plastic bottles in the 1960's.

Now Constar continues to be an innovator in developing PET technology that gives customers new options for more sustainable packaging that meet retailer, consumer and cost objectives.

MRC