Company News
September 30, 2020
Dow Outlines Restructuring Plans
Dow outlines actions to deliver structural cost improvements and further enhance competitiveness
Wed September 30, 2020 6:00 AM|Business Wire|About: DOW
Today Dow will close the sale of its rail infrastructure assets at six North American sites; transaction to close three months earlier than planned and demonstrates best-owner mindset and continued evaluation of non-revenue-generating assets across its global portfolio
MIDLAND, Mich.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Dow Inc. (DOW) today outlined the series of actions it will take to achieve previously announced structural cost improvement targets and further enhance its long-term competitiveness as the global economy recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.
As announced during the Company’s second quarter earnings on July 23, 2020, Dow is implementing a restructuring program to reduce its global workforce costs by approximately six percent and to rationalize certain manufacturing assets. These actions are expected to result in total annualized EBITDA savings of more than $300 million by the end of 2021.
Manufacturing asset impacts include:
- Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure will rationalize its asset footprint by shutting down certain amines and solvents facilities in the United States and Europe as well as select small-scale downstream polyurethanes manufacturing facilities.
- Performance Materials & Coatings will shut down manufacturing assets, primarily small-scale coatings reactors, and will also rationalize its upstream asset footprint in Europe and in the United States and Canada by adjusting the supply of siloxane and silicon metal to balance to regional needs.
“Given the expected gradual and uneven global economic recovery from COVID-19, we announced in July that we are taking necessary actions to continue to optimize our asset footprint, reduce structural costs and enhance the competitiveness of our business over the long-term,” said Jim Fitterling, Dow chairman and CEO. “We continue to stay focused on delivering strong cashflow, strengthening our financial profile and maximizing our operational advantages, and we remain well positioned to capture significant growth as market conditions improve.”
The Company will record a charge in the third quarter of 2020 for costs associated with the restructuring program activities. In total, these costs are expected to be in the range of $500 million to $600 million and will consist of severance and related benefit costs; costs associated with exit and disposal activities; and asset write-downs and write-offs.
The restructuring program is in addition to the $500 million of operating expense savings Dow will achieve by the end of 2020. The Company also remains on target to achieve its reduced target of $1.25 billion for capital expenditures in 2020, down from $2 billion in 2019.
Dow will involve local stakeholders as defined in each country and in compliance with relevant information and consultation processes.
Dow also confirmed that today it will close the sale of its rail infrastructure assets at six North American sites to Watco, three months ahead of its initial planned closing, for cash proceeds in excess of $310 million. Earlier this month the Company also announced plans to divest certain marine and terminal operations and assets to Vopak Industrial Infrastructure Americas for cash proceeds of $620 million, which is expected to close by year-end.
September 30, 2020
Dow Outlines Restructuring Plans
Dow outlines actions to deliver structural cost improvements and further enhance competitiveness
Wed September 30, 2020 6:00 AM|Business Wire|About: DOW
Today Dow will close the sale of its rail infrastructure assets at six North American sites; transaction to close three months earlier than planned and demonstrates best-owner mindset and continued evaluation of non-revenue-generating assets across its global portfolio
MIDLAND, Mich.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Dow Inc. (DOW) today outlined the series of actions it will take to achieve previously announced structural cost improvement targets and further enhance its long-term competitiveness as the global economy recovers from the coronavirus pandemic.
As announced during the Company’s second quarter earnings on July 23, 2020, Dow is implementing a restructuring program to reduce its global workforce costs by approximately six percent and to rationalize certain manufacturing assets. These actions are expected to result in total annualized EBITDA savings of more than $300 million by the end of 2021.
Manufacturing asset impacts include:
- Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure will rationalize its asset footprint by shutting down certain amines and solvents facilities in the United States and Europe as well as select small-scale downstream polyurethanes manufacturing facilities.
- Performance Materials & Coatings will shut down manufacturing assets, primarily small-scale coatings reactors, and will also rationalize its upstream asset footprint in Europe and in the United States and Canada by adjusting the supply of siloxane and silicon metal to balance to regional needs.
“Given the expected gradual and uneven global economic recovery from COVID-19, we announced in July that we are taking necessary actions to continue to optimize our asset footprint, reduce structural costs and enhance the competitiveness of our business over the long-term,” said Jim Fitterling, Dow chairman and CEO. “We continue to stay focused on delivering strong cashflow, strengthening our financial profile and maximizing our operational advantages, and we remain well positioned to capture significant growth as market conditions improve.”
The Company will record a charge in the third quarter of 2020 for costs associated with the restructuring program activities. In total, these costs are expected to be in the range of $500 million to $600 million and will consist of severance and related benefit costs; costs associated with exit and disposal activities; and asset write-downs and write-offs.
The restructuring program is in addition to the $500 million of operating expense savings Dow will achieve by the end of 2020. The Company also remains on target to achieve its reduced target of $1.25 billion for capital expenditures in 2020, down from $2 billion in 2019.
Dow will involve local stakeholders as defined in each country and in compliance with relevant information and consultation processes.
Dow also confirmed that today it will close the sale of its rail infrastructure assets at six North American sites to Watco, three months ahead of its initial planned closing, for cash proceeds in excess of $310 million. Earlier this month the Company also announced plans to divest certain marine and terminal operations and assets to Vopak Industrial Infrastructure Americas for cash proceeds of $620 million, which is expected to close by year-end.
September 29, 2020
Emery CPI Presentation
Emery Oleochemicals to Present Leading Foam Recycling Technology at CPI
2020 Sustainability Webinar
CINCINNATI, OH, USA (September 28, 2020) – Emery Oleochemicals, a world leading, natural-based specialty chemicals manufacturer, is pleased to announce that Mark Kinkelaar, PhD, Global Director of the company’s Eco-Friendly Polyols business, will be a panel speaker as part of the Center for the Polyurethanes Industry (CPI) 2020 fall webinar series. The webinar “Sustainability and End of Life Topics in the Polyurethanes
Industry” is scheduled for Monday, October 5 th from 11am to 1pm Eastern US.
Dr. Kinkelaar’s presentation, titled “Driving Circularity: Advances over six years with INFIGREEN ® recycled content polyols”, will showcase Emery’s pioneering and proprietary technology of converting scrap foam into recycled content polyols. Pilot scale since 2014 and commercialized at industrial-scale production since 2015 in a bespoke plant dedicated to manufacturing polyols and specialty esters, Emery
Oleochemicals has led the way to help customers achieve sustainability goals through chemical recycling of polyurethane foam with both closed-loop and open-loop processes.
To learn more about Emery’s INFIGREEN ® recycled content polyols product line, visit www.emeryoleo.com/polyols.
To register to attend the complimentary CPI October 5th sustainability webinar, visit
https://web.cvent.com/event/4fad5010-45a8-49ec-9bf9-0a405a602a50/summary
September 29, 2020
Emery CPI Presentation
Emery Oleochemicals to Present Leading Foam Recycling Technology at CPI
2020 Sustainability Webinar
CINCINNATI, OH, USA (September 28, 2020) – Emery Oleochemicals, a world leading, natural-based specialty chemicals manufacturer, is pleased to announce that Mark Kinkelaar, PhD, Global Director of the company’s Eco-Friendly Polyols business, will be a panel speaker as part of the Center for the Polyurethanes Industry (CPI) 2020 fall webinar series. The webinar “Sustainability and End of Life Topics in the Polyurethanes
Industry” is scheduled for Monday, October 5 th from 11am to 1pm Eastern US.
Dr. Kinkelaar’s presentation, titled “Driving Circularity: Advances over six years with INFIGREEN ® recycled content polyols”, will showcase Emery’s pioneering and proprietary technology of converting scrap foam into recycled content polyols. Pilot scale since 2014 and commercialized at industrial-scale production since 2015 in a bespoke plant dedicated to manufacturing polyols and specialty esters, Emery
Oleochemicals has led the way to help customers achieve sustainability goals through chemical recycling of polyurethane foam with both closed-loop and open-loop processes.
To learn more about Emery’s INFIGREEN ® recycled content polyols product line, visit www.emeryoleo.com/polyols.
To register to attend the complimentary CPI October 5th sustainability webinar, visit
https://web.cvent.com/event/4fad5010-45a8-49ec-9bf9-0a405a602a50/summary
September 29, 2020
Hexion to Sell Businesses
Hexion to sell phenolic specialty, two other businesses September 29/2020 MOSCOW (MRC) — Hexion (Columbus, Ohio) has agreed to sell its phenolic specialty resin, hexamine, and European-based forest products resins businesses for approximately USD425 million to private equity firms Black Diamond Capital Management (Greenwich, Connecticut) and Investindustrial (Luxembourg), said Chemweek.
The deal consists of USD335 million in cash and certain assumed liabilities, with the remainder in future proceeds to be based on the performance of the business, says Hexion. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, including works council consultation. The company expects to use the sale proceeds to invest in its business and further reduce its debt, it says.
The combined businesses being sold posted sales of approximately USD530 million for the last 12 months ended 30 June 2020, according to Hexion. The sale includes approximately 900 personnel and 11 manufacturing facilities worldwide, where phenolic specialty resins and engineered thermoset molding compounds are produced for end markets including building and construction, industrial, automotive, electronics, agriculture, and consumer, it says.
“We continue to strategically manage our portfolio providing us the ability to further strengthen our balance sheet and maintain a strong business going forward. As we proceed, we will leverage our differentiated technology and global manufacturing footprint to serve the diversified customers of our remaining businesses,” says Hexion president and CEO, Craig Rogerson.
The businesses being acquired “boast globally recognizable brands and trademarks,” say Black Diamond and Investindustrial in a joint statement. The equity firms have partnered in the past on a collective investment in Polynt (Scanzorosciate, Italy) and Reichold (Durham, North Carolina), which saw the two companies merged into Polynt-Reichold in 2017. “Black Diamond has prior experience investing in phenolic specialty resin businesses and looks forward to bringing that experience to the acquired businesses,” they say.
Credit Suisse is acting as Hexion’s financial advisor, and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison as legal counsel. Hexion reported a first-quarter 2020 net loss in May of USD59 million, compared with a USD52-million loss in the year-ago quarter, with net sales declining 6.8% year on year to USD826 million.
As MRC informed earlier, Hexion, a major American manufacturer of phenol and bisphenol A (BPA), plans to close its BPA plant in Pernis (Pernis, The Netherlands) in early October for scheduled maintenance. This 120 ktpa BPA production facility will be closed in the second week of October and is expected to resume production in three weeks.
Phenol is the main raw material for bisphenol A (BPA) production, which in turn is used to produce polycarbonate (PC).
According to MRC’s ScanPlast, in Russia, following the results of the first two quarters, the total estimated consumption of PC granulate in the Russian Federation (excluding imports and exports to Belarus) amounted to 47.3 thousand tonnes against 40.7 thousand tonnes in 2019. Total demand increased by 16%.
Hexion Inc., formerly Momentive Specialty Chemicals Inc., is a chemical company based in Columbus, Ohio. It manufactures thermosetting resins and related technologies and specialty products. Hexion has two divisions: the epoxy, phenolic and coating resins division and the forest products division. 
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