Dow hires bank to sell Angus Chemical in Buffalo Grove

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Dow Chemical Co. has kicked off processes to sell two of its specialty chemicals subsidiaries that could fetch close to USD2 billion combined, according to people familiar with the matter, part of its effort to divest several billion dollars worth of non-core assets by 2015, said Chicagotribune.

Dow has hired investment bankers including Morgan Stanley to sell its Angus Chemical Co. subsidiary in Buffalo Grove, Ill., as well as AgroFresh Inc., the people said on Wednesday, asking not to be named because the matter is not public.

Those two units are in addition to the epoxy business and some chlorine and derivatives assets that Dow previously said it has earmarked for sale. The move to put additional assets on the block underscore Dow's stated effort to divest less lucrative businesses and return more money to shareholders in the face of increasing investor pressure. Midland, Michigan-based Dow makes everything from insecticides to plastics.

Dow's Angus Chemical Co. is a wholly owned subsidiary that makes additives used in a variety of products including paints, personal care and cosmetics and life science utilities. That business has earnings before interest, taxes depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of around USD115 million and could be sold for more than 10 times that amount, some of the people said.

Philadelphia-based AgroFresh, another wholly owned Dow subsidiary up for sale, makes products used to enhance the freshness, quality and value of fresh produce. Its flagship product is the SmartFresh Quality System, a freshness protection technology proven to maintain firmness, texture and appearance of fruits during storage and transport, according to its website.

This unit has USD50 million to USD60 million of annual EBITDA and would also likely be sold for more than 10 times that number, the people said. Those businesses, both in the early stage of sale processes, are expected to attract interest from other chemical companies as well as private equity firms, according to the people familiar with the matter.

As MRC informed previously, Dow Chemical, the largest US chemical maker by sales, said in December 2013 it would separate its chlorine-related assets including its epoxy business as the company focuses on higher-margin activities. The chlorine assets account for as much as USD5 billion of annual revenue and include plants at 11 sites employing almost 2,000 people.

The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational chemical corporation. As of 2007, it is the second-largest chemical manufacturer in the world by revenue (after BASF) and as of February 2009, the third-largest chemical company in the world by market capitalization (after BASF and DuPont). Dow is a large producer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber.
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Borealis buys rest of Dutch plant from DuPont

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Borealis, a leading provider in the fields of polyolefins, base chemicals and fertilizers, has announced that it has completed the acquisition of DuPont Holding Netherland B.V. shares of Speciality Polymers Antwerp N.V., as per the company's press release.

Previously, Speciality Polymers Antwerp N.V., located in Zwijndrecht (Antwerp, Belgium) was a joint venture between DuPont Holding Netherlands B.V. (67%), Borealis Polymers N.V. and Borealis Kallo N.V. (together 33%).

"The acquisition of the full ownership of Speciality Polymers Antwerp is in line with our strategy to grow our polyolefin business in specific market areas", says Mark Garrett, Borealis Chief Executive. "Acrylate copolymers, which are part of a broader portfolio of specialty polymers produced at Speciality Polymers Antwerp, are an important building block for our value-added products sold into our core Energy & Infrastructure market."

Under the new arrangement, DuPont will continue to serve the market with ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) and acrylate copolymers and Borealis will supply DuPont with ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) and acrylate copolymers from the Specialty Polymers Antwerp facility.

Borealis intends to fully integrate the new site and its employees into the Borealis organisation. The company will start the full integration of the site and its activities, a process in which safety and business continuity will be key.

As MRC informed earlier, last summer, Borealis and Borouge announced the dedicated roll-out of the technology platform Borlink in Russia, according to the company's press release. Borlink was introduced by Borealis and Borouge as a technology platform offering a complete global package of power cable compounds and expertise serving applications for medium and high voltage (MV, HV), including extra high voltage (EHV) and high voltage direct current (HVDC).

DuPont is an American chemical company that was founded in July, 1802. The company manufactures a wide range of chemical products, leading extensive innovative research in this field. The company is the inventor of many unique plastics and other materials, including neoprene, nylon, Teflon, Kevlar, Mylar, Tyvek, etc. DuPont was the developer and main producer of Freon used in the production of refrigeration equipment.

Vienna-based Borealis is a leading producer of polyolefins, base chemicals and fertilizers. The firm posted sales of more than USD10 billion in 2013. Borealis is majority-owned by state-owned International Petroleum Investment Co. of Abu Dhabi. IPIC also owns North American ethylene and polyethylene producer Nova Chemicals and Middle Eastern petrochemicals firm Borouge.
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PVC imports in Kazakhstan increased by 76% in January - July 2014

MOSCOW (MRC) - Imports of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in Kazakhstan increased to 39,700 tonnes in the first seven months of this year, up 76% compared with the same time a year earlier, according to MRC analysts.
July imports of unmixed PVC in Kazakhstan rose to 8,700 tonnes, compared with 6,000 tonnes in June. Total imports of PVC in the country grew to 39,700 tonnes in January - July 2014, compared with 22,500 tonnes year on year.

Such a significant increase in PVC imports in Kazakhstan resulted from a further re-import of the polymer in Russia. The main suppliers of PVC in the local market were producers from China, with their share more than 97% from the total PVC imports into the country.

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Sidel opens training center in Mexico

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Swiss machinery company Sidel Group has opened a new training center in Guadalajara, Mexico, featuring a virtual factory environment, augmented reality and authentic parts that trainees can handle themselves, said Plasticsnews.

The new facility, which brings Sidel’s training centers to seven, has been developed to meet local customer needs.
"We know that our customers have high expectations, so the first step was to conduct extensive research with leading companies," said Jake Randall Brown, Sidel’s technical training center project manager in a news release. "During this process we looked to gather as much information as possible, including brainstorming sessions from the different departments of Sidel."

The new center will feature tailored sessions using authentic parts for assembling and disassembling, along with functional key items of equipment such as valves; filling, blowing and labeling stations; production line PCC (panels for control and command) simulators to develop troubleshooting skills; and the latest 3-D interactive modeling system, bringing the ability to disassemble in detail every piece of equipment in the entire Sidel portfolio, says the company.

Sidel states it trains over 5,000 people globally every year.

As MRC wrote before, Sidel (Le Havre/France) has developed a PET bottle base for still drinks, which is says is stronger, lighter and cheaper to produce. The 'StarLite' base, which is particularly suited to water and juices, uses two proprietary PET designs: the 'Edge Beam', a groove structure that improves stiffness, and the 'Smart Disc' that reinforces the base to prevent deformation.

Sidel is a manufacturing company providing packaging for liquids such as water; carbonated and non-carbonated soft drinks; and sensitive beverages like milk, liquid dairy products, juices, nectars, tea, coffee and isotonics; as well as edible oil, beer and other alcoholic beverages. Sidel manufacturers and services equipment that enables other companies to package such liquids using one of three main materials: plastic (especially PET, and also HDPE and PP).
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Radius Group and Austrian district heating Leader KE KELIT form new JV

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Radius Group, the multinational market leader in PE pipe and fittings, and KE KELIT the leading Austrian pipe systems manufacturer based in Linz, have announce the formation of new joint venture between Radius and the District Heating business of KE KELIT, as per Radius' press release.

Radius will take a majority position in the new company which will trade under the name, Radius-Kelit.

Andy Taylor, Radius CEO, said: "we are overjoyed to be partnering with KE KELIT and the Egger family in establishing such an exciting new opportunity. District Heating is a core segment for the Radius Group and this move will provide all the right combinations to establish a springboard for European growth. The market experience, position and routes to market which KE KELIT, a pioneer in the European District Heating market, provide, combined with the innovative product proposition and the manufacturing and technology expertise from Radius will create a potent market participant. We look forward to working with our partners and their skilled and dedicated workforce to bring to the wider European market a unique offering of reinforced, flexible, pre-insulated plastic pipes designed specifically for high temperature and high pressure networks. This move is the latest in Radius' strategy to complement our core pipe and fittings business with closely associated products, services and technologies and in so doing enhancing our value added proposition to our customer base".

As MRC informed previously, in August 2013, Radius Systems announced the acquisition of 100% of the issued share capital of Aeon Group Holdings Ltd. Radius Systems, the UK's leading supplier of PE pipes and fittings to the Gas and Water utilities sector, has announced the acquisition of 100% of the issued share capital of Aeon Group Holdings Ltd

KE KELIT is a 100% family owned company in Linz, Austria. It is one of the leading manufacturers of pipe systems for hot and cold water, heating, ceiling cooling, pipe insulation and compressed air. KE KELIT has been active in international markets for over 60 years and has manufacturing facilities at five locations and more than 20 offices in Europe, the Middle East and Asia/Pacific region.

Radius Group is the market leader in engineered polymer products in the CIS and the largest producer of polyethylene pipes and fittings in Europe. The Group is the market leader in polymer composite materials supply to the automotive, white goods and building materials sectors in the CIS where it is also the leading manufacturer of District Heating Solutions. In Q1 2013, Polyplastic Group, the Russian and CIS market leader in plastic processing, completed the acquisition of Radius Systems. Radius Group operates from 20 plants and exports to more than 50 countries worldwide with an annual turnover of about EUR1bn and employs in excess of 7,000 people.
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