Epoxy

March 13, 2024

DCM Shriram to Build Epoxy Resin Plant in India

DCM Shriram to invest Rs1,000 crore in epoxy resin plant

DCM Shriram to invest Rs1,000 crore in epoxy resin plant

The diversified agricultural company DCM Shriram plans to invest Rs 1,000 crore in the next few years to build a greenfield plant that will produce epoxy resin.

The Board of the company has given its chemical division permission to invest in epoxy and other value-added products as a means of expanding into advanced materials. Furthermore, their epichlorohydrin (ECH) factory in Jhagadia, Gujarat, is almost finished and should be active in the first quarter of the 2024–2025 fiscal year.

With essential raw materials like caustic and ECH already in its inventory, the company is well-positioned to penetrate the market for value-added and epoxy products. The company is already well-known in a number of industries, such as value-added (fenesta building systems-UPVC windows & doors), agri-rural, and chloro-vinyl.

Additionally, the extensive line of advanced materials products, which includes solvent cuts, hardeners, formulated resins, liquid epoxy resins, and reactive diluents, is ready to serve a variety of industries, including electronics, wind-blades, electric vehicles (EVs), electronics, fire-proofing, and lightweighting.

We remind, Shriram Fertilizers & Chemicals (SFC), a unit of DCM Shriram Ltd. and the third largest chlor-alkali producer in India, will use Topsoe’s ClearView solution for digitalizing its ammonia plant. The digital platform was operational in early 2022.

DCM Shriram Ltd is a diversified Indian conglomerate whose business portfolio spans across multiple sectors including Agri-business – Urea, Sugar, Ethanol, Farm Solution Business covering the entire range of inputs, R&D based Hybrid Seeds. Chlor-Vinyl Business – Caustic Soda, Chlorine, Aluminum Chloride, Calcium Carbide, PVC Resins, PVC Compounds, Power and Cement. And Value Added Business Fenesta Building Systems makes UPVC and Aluminium Windows & Doors. Chemicals is one of the company’s largest businesses and is expected to continue as one of the key growth drivers for the company, it said.

Furthermore, the company board of directors have inter-alia declared an interim dividend for the financial year 2023-24 on the paid-up equity share capital of the company, at 200 per cent (Rs 4 per equity share of face value of Rs 2 each). The record date fixed for the purpose of the said interim dividend shall be March 6, 2024.

February 19, 2024

A Familiar Name in Urethanes Now New CEO of Olin

Olin taps LyondellBasell executive Lane as new President/CEO, succeeding Sutton

Feb. 19, 2024 8:14 PM ETOlin Corporation (OLN) StockLYBBy: Carl Surran, SA News Editor

Olin Corporate office is shown in Freeport, TX, USA.
JHVEPhoto/iStock Editorial via Getty Images

Olin (NYSE:OLN) said Monday it named LyondellBaseel (LYB) executive Kenneth Lane as its new President and CEO effective March 18, when Scott Sutton will step down from those positions; no explanation was given for Sutton’s departure.

Lane was Executive VP of Global Olefins and Polyolefins at LyondellBasell (LYB), which he joined in 2019 after serving BASF for 13 years and holding executive positions across a wide range of businesses including Polyurethanes, Monomers and Catalysts; previously, he had spent time at BP Chemicals and Amoco Chemical.

Kim Foley will assume Lane’s previous role at LyondellBasell (LYB) after serving as Senior VP of Global Engineering, Turnarounds and Health, Safety and Environment.

https://seekingalpha.com/news/4068620-olin-taps-lyondellbasell-executive-lane-as-new-presidentceo-succeeding-sutton?mailingid=34401560&messageid=2900&serial=34401560.4482

February 6, 2024

Dow Chemical Urethane History Part I

January 30, 2024

Epoxy Highlights from Olin Investors Call

Olin Corporation (OLN) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Jan. 26, 2024 11:38 AM ETOlin Corporation (OLN) Stock

143.43K Followers

Q4: 2024-01-25 Earnings Summary

EPS of $0.27 beats by $0.09 | Revenue of $1.61B (-18.33% Y/Y) beats by $94.55M

Olin Corporation (NYSE:OLN) Q4 2023 Results Conference Call January 26, 2024 9:00 AM ET

Company Participants

Steve Keenan – Director, IR

Scott Sutton – Chief Executive Officer

Todd Slater – Chief Financial Officer

Scott Sutton

Thanks Steve, and good morning to all. In the fourth quarter, the Olin team delivered the four items that were promised, which were $210 million of adjusted EBITDA overcoming a negative $100 million EBITDA impact from our purposeful value accelerator initiative. Stopping the decline of ECU values as a result of our value accelerator initiative, completing the remaining purchase of 10% of our outstanding equity in 2023, and setting the company up for a 2024 that is better than 2023.

We start that set up by making the first quarter of the New Year better than the fourth quarter of the past year. We are also very pleased that outside of the minor purchase price for the White Flyer acquisition, Olin’s net debt at the end of 2023 was essentially the same as the net debt at the beginning of 2023.

Since this could well be my last Olin earnings call. I wanted to remind everyone that Olin has a very unique value creation equation of lifting people to a higher level of fulfillment, delivering value on a contemporary basis through a novel idea pipeline and practicing absolute leadership in commerce. This unique value equation opens a long runway to a very positive future and our leadership team will take Olin there. The earnings and cash flow power of Olin is huge.

Arun Viswanathan

So I guess, I just wanted to ask first on the guidance. So, it looks like you’re expecting some growth in ’24. How do you see that proceeding? Looks like your Q1 guidance is a little bit below where we were expecting. So, I know that you’re implementing the value accelerator initiative. So, maybe you can just kind of walk us through some of the growth you expect, as you move through the quarters in ’24?

Scott Sutton

Good morning, Arun. Happy to do that. I mean, we’re really forecasting some profit growth, right. And if you just walk through the three businesses, and I’ll just start with Winchester. I mean, we are right in the middle of doubling our military business and that is on-track both domestically and internationally.

In the commercial side of that business, demand stays rather high. And on top of that, we have the White Flyer acquisition for a full year. And on top of that, there’s going to be a shortage of propellant across the industry this year and Winchester is well-positioned to take advantage of that. So, we feel really good about the profit growth in Winchester.

Look, in Epoxy, it’s much more a self-help story. We’re not necessarily anticipating demand growth, but clearly the restructuring work that we did is applicable for a whole year. Our focus on systems is working. We don’t have to clean up inventory as much as we did in 2023. And we’re going to work on the illegal flow of products coming from Asia as well.

Arun Viswanathan

And then if I could just ask, is there any update on the search for new CEO [indiscernible]?

Scott Sutton

Look, Arun, I mean, I really don’t have an update on that. And I’m really sorry for that, because look, our shareholders and our Olin women and men, who have really built this value for those shareholders, they deserve a lot better than that from me. But I’m out of the process. That process is 100% run buy our independent board members only. What I can say is to the best of my knowledge, I’m not aware of any offer being extended out there yet to any candidate.

Kevin McCarthy

Scott, I’d welcome your updated thoughts on the shape of the Epoxy cycle. If I look at Slide 8, it appears as though your prices eroded in 4Q versus 3Q. How do you think that will trend in the first quarter? And then, I’m also interested to hear your thoughts on Epoxy’s in Europe. We’re reading about disruptions in trade routes relative to the Red Sea and purchasing managers seem to want to kind of get ahead of those longer lead times and increased tensions and friction and so forth. How do you see the next quarter or two shaping up for Epoxy?

Scott Sutton

Look, I mean, we’ve announced price increase and we’re getting some price increase. And in fact, if you really looked at what’s happened over the last few months has been more of a wash tub bottom. It really hasn’t declined further. In fact, even the trade publications now are saying that this is a bottom. Believe me, we absolutely say that this is a bottom. And the disruptions for trade routes that is starting to have an impact, particularly in Europe.

So there’s a lot of momentum for the start of lifting prices again through Epoxy. It’s going to be slow though. I think, what you’ll end up seeing us do is sort of take that wash tub and profit up a little bit. I wouldn’t expect something really, really fast there, but we’re going to change the slope of that curve.

David Begleiter

And just again on Epoxy, what’s the path back to mid-cycle earnings given the amount of oversupply in the marketplace today?

Scott Sutton

Well, I guess it depends on what you call mid-cycle in that business. But I’ll just say it’s a multiyear path and maybe leave it at that.

Jeff Zekauskas

Earlier in the call, you spoke of a large contract that can end in 2030. Did that customer indicate that they didn’t wish to renew?

Scott Sutton

What I would say is that’s the natural expiration of that contract. And we’re currently in a dispute with a very significant value lift opportunity. So we’ll just have to see where that goes by 2030.

Vincent Anderson

So, maybe you have a different view, but it looks like China is probably still planning a fair amount of capacity up and down the Epoxy value chain over the next few years. So, to me at least it would appear that trade protections might be necessary even if we did see some amount of demand recovery. So, I guess to turn that into a question, are you still considering trade cases in Epoxy? And how important is sort of your renewed focus on fleshing out your derivative portfolio as a balance to the operating leverage on the base resin assets?

Scott Sutton

Yes, sure. I mean, no, we’re absolutely doing more than considering that, right. I mean, look, effectively this is illegal product trade flows coming into both Europe and the U.S. And this has to be stopped. And for some of the reasons that you said, it’s likely to continue. So, we’re absolutely going to pursue that.

I think in terms of getting rates up, we’ve reduced our on the ground capacity quite a bit and we’re using our systems portfolio to get some operating leverage back across our base resin. I think that was the second part of your question.

John Roberts

Thank you, and best wishes as well, Scott. I think acetone prices spiked during the quarter. Is that just the normal co-product dynamics with the weak BPA market for Epoxies or is there something else going on there?

Scott Sutton

Yes. I mean principally that’s it. You’re right. I mean phenol acetone co-production a little bit like chlorine caustic. And we sort of transferred some of our model that we run in the ECU world into our phenol acetone production and marketing scheme. And so you’ve seen us take advantage of that and get some value out of assets.

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4665310-olin-corporation-oln-q4-2023-earnings-call-transcript?mailingid=34135517&messageid=2800&serial=34135517.865

January 25, 2024

Olin Results

Olin Announces Fourth Quarter 2023 Results

Jan. 25, 2024 4:05 PM ETOlin Corporation (OLN)

Highlights

  • Fourth quarter 2023 net income of $52.9 million, or $0.43 per diluted share
  • Quarterly adjusted EBITDA of $210.1 million
  • Share repurchases of $711.3 million in 2023
  • Expect 2024 adjusted EBITDA to improve from 2023

CLAYTON, Mo., Jan. 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Olin Corporation (OLN) announced financial results for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2023. Fourth quarter 2023 reported net income was $52.9 million, or $0.43 per diluted share, which compares to fourth quarter 2022 reported net income of $196.6 million, or $1.43 per diluted share. Fourth quarter 2023 adjusted EBITDA of $210.1 million excludes depreciation and amortization expense of $128.5 million, insurance recoveries of $22.0 million, and restructuring income of $2.4 million. Fourth quarter 2022 adjusted EBITDA was $441.8 million. Sales in the fourth quarter 2023 were $1,614.6 million, compared to $1,977.0 million in the fourth quarter 2022. Full year 2023 reported net income was $460.2 million, or $3.57 per diluted share, which compares to full year 2022 reported net income of $1,326.9 million, or $8.94 per diluted share.

https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2161236/Olin_Logo.jpg

Scott Sutton, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Through the challenging economic environment of 2023, Olin successfully demonstrated our unique winning model by delivering $1.3 billion of adjusted EBITDA and corresponding cash flows enabling the 2023 repurchase of approximately 10% of our outstanding shares. As we are confident in our Company’s future and the strength of our earnings and cash flow, we plan to continue our capital allocation strategy, while committing to maintain an investment-grade balance sheet and achieving additional investment-grade credit ratings.

“In fourth quarter 2023, we executed a ‘value accelerator initiative’ designed to halt the decline in our electrochemical unit (“ECU”) values and accelerate a favorable inflection point for our Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls business. We are seeing success with our ‘value accelerator initiative’ but expect to continue to limit our market participation through February 2024, as we remain disciplined in our approach to ECU values. We anticipate our initiative supports an improved 2024 adjusted EBITDA as compared to 2023. Considering the ongoing difficult global economic environment and our ‘value accelerator initiative,’ we expect first quarter 2024 results from our Chemical businesses to be slightly higher than fourth quarter 2023 levels. We also expect our Winchester business first quarter 2024 results to increase sequentially from fourth quarter 2023. Overall, we expect Olin’s first quarter 2024 adjusted EBITDA to improve by approximately 10% from fourth quarter 2023 levels.”

SEGMENT REPORTING

Olin defines segment earnings as income (loss) before interest expense, interest income, other operating income (expense), non-operating pension income, other income, and income taxes.

EPOXY

Epoxy sales for the fourth quarter 2023 were $313.1 million, compared to $484.2 million in the fourth quarter 2022. The decrease in Epoxy sales was primarily due to lower product pricing and $94.0 million of lower cumene and bisphenol A sales. As part of the Epoxy business restructuring actions to right-size our global asset footprint to the most cost-effective asset base to support our strategic operating model, the Epoxy business ceased operations at our cumene facility in Terneuzen, Netherlands in first quarter 2023 and one of our bisphenol A production lines at our Stade, Germany facility in fourth quarter 2022. Fourth quarter 2023 segment loss was ($23.1) million, compared to segment earnings of $30.5 million in the fourth quarter 2022. The $53.6 million decrease in Epoxy segment earnings was primarily due to lower pricing and incremental costs associated with inventory reduction, partially offset by lower raw material and operating costs, mainly decreased natural gas and electrical power costs, and an improved product mix. Epoxy fourth quarter 2023 results included depreciation and amortization expense of $13.0 million compared to $22.4 million in the fourth quarter 2022.

https://seekingalpha.com/pr/19603254-olin-announces-fourth-quarter-2023-results?mailingid=34125753&messageid=2900&serial=34125753.1516

RSS Sign Up for Email Updates