MOSCOW (MRC) -- Clariant, a specialty chemicals major, is selling its pigments business to a consortium consisting of pigment maker Heubach Group (Langelsheim, Germany) and private investment firm SK Capital (South Korea), according to Kemicalinfo.
The combined business will operate under the Heubach name and create a leading global pigments business with annual sales of more than EUR 900 million (USD1.09 billion).
The transaction values Clariant Pigments at approximately EUR740 million (USD897 million), with an additional consideration of EUR46 million (USD55.8 million) contingent on the business unit’s financial performance in 2021.
As part of the transaction, Clariant will hold a minority stake in the combined company, demonstrating its continued commitment to the success of Clariant Pigments and the significant growth opportunities in the combination with Heubach.
The closing of the transaction is subject to customary conditions and approvals and is expected to occur in the first half of 2022.
Heubach is a global manufacturer of organic, inorganic and non-toxic corrosion protection pigments with four global production sites and approximately 1,000 employees.
Clariant Pigments is a worldwide supplier of organic pigments, pigment preparations and dyes, operates 13 global production sites and employs around 1,900 people.
As MRC reported earlier, in October 2020, Clariant announced the construction of a new state-of-the-art catalyst production site in China. This project represents a significant investment which further strengthens Clariant’s position in China and enhances its ability to support its customers in the country’s thriving petrochemicals industry.
The new facility will be primarily responsible for producing the Catofin catalyst for propane dehydrogenation, which is used in the production of olefins such as propylene. Thanks to its excellent reliability and productivity, Catofin delivers superior annual production output compared to alternative technologies, resulting in increased overall profitability for propylene producers, says the company. Construction at the Dushan Port Economic Development Zone in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province was scheduled to commence in Q3 2020, and Clariant expects to be at full production capacity by 2022.
Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 241,030 tonnes in January 2021 versus 217,890 tonnes a year earlier. Only shipments of low density polyethylene (LDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 141,870 tonnes in January 2021 versus 123,520 tonnes a year earlier. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
Clariant AG is a Swiss chemical company and a world leader in the production of specialty chemicals for the textile, printing, mining and metallurgical industries. It is engaged in processing crude oil products in pigments, plastics and paints.
MRC