Company News
October 9, 2023
Q3 Chemical M&A: Everchem Made The List
Chemical Deal Results
| Seller | Buyer | Business | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belle Chemical | Arclin | methylamines and derivatives | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| Eastman | Ineos | Texas City TX site (acetic acid) – $490v | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| M. Holland | Interfacial (Nagase) | 3D Printing Group | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| Tredegar | Oben Group | Terphane flexible packaging films – $152s/$116v | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| LRBG Chemicals | Bakelite Synthetics | liquid phenolic resins, amino resins and amino spray-dried powdered resins | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| M. Holland | Ravago | distribution of thermoplastic resins and ancillary materials (acquisition of majority stake) – $1,500s | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| DuPont | TJC | 80.1% stake in Delrin acetal homopolymer business – $1,800v | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| Advanced Color Technologies | Techmer | color and additive compounds | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| Specialty Products International | Everchem | technologies for polyurethane foams and elastomers | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| Chase Corporation | KKR | acquisition of whole company (adhesives, sealants, additives, industrial tapes, corrosion protection and waterproofing) – $326s/$1,300v | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
| Seller | Buyer | Business | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thiessen Team USA | Sika | shotcrete and grouting products for the mining industr3 | 3rd Quarter 2023 |
You can tell M&A is slow this quarter!
http://www.chemicaldeals.com/Results.aspx?searchtext=&quarter=3rd+Quarter+2023
October 9, 2023
A Little About Adnoc
Abu Dhabi’s Adnoc bets on global expansion
Energy major seeks opportunities in renewables, LNG and others
By Reuters
Published: Mon 9 Oct 2023, 8:13 PM
The UAE is refashioning state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) in the image of an international oil major by stepping up its global expansion and finding new revenue streams.
As part of this strategy, Adnoc told Reuters it was actively pursuing select opportunities in the areas of renewable energy, gas, petrochemicals and liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Two people with knowledge of the matter said the company was on the hunt for LNG assets in Africa and was considering buying Galp’s 10 per cent stake in a multi-billion-dollar natural gas project in the Rovuma basin off the coast of Mozambique.
Adnoc has already bought a stake in an Azerbaijani gas field, has put in an offer with BP for a stake in Israeli gas producer NewMed Energy , has opened takeover talks with German plastics maker Covestro and is looking to create a $20 billion chemicals giant with Austria’s OMV.
The state-owned company also told Reuters it was investing in energy trading. “As part of our international growth strategy, we are focused on expanding our presence in renewables, gas, LNG and chemicals, and are actively pursuing select opportunities, while also investing in and growing our trading capabilities,” an Adnoc spokesperson said in response to written questions.
Adnoc has two trading arms, both set up in 2020: Adnoc Trading, which is focused on crude oil, and Adnoc Global Trading, a joint venture with Italy’s Eni and OMV which is more focused on refined products.
While Adnoc’s deal-making dates back to 2017 when it listed its fuel distribution unit, the pace of change accelerated after a board meeting in November. The board brought forward to 2027 plans to up production capacity to 5 million barrels per day and also approved a five-year business plan and capital spending of $150 billion. “The thinking is to move away from a traditional state oil firm model to more like an IOC (international oil company),” a source with knowledge of the matter said.
The transformation at Adnoc is similar to ongoing changes at state-owned energy giants in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
The national energy champions – Adnoc, Saudia Arabia’s Aramco and QatarEnergy – drive their economies but were traditionally focused on oil and gas production at home.
Now, as the transition to renewable energy accelerates, the timeline is shortening for the national oil companies (NOCs) to monetise their reserves and they are also doubling-down on opportunities further afield.
To propel its changes, Adnoc has hired more than 3,370 staff, including 28 senior managers, so far this year from companies such as global energy firms, trading houses, banks and consultancies, according to data on employment network LinkedIn.
LinkedIn data shows Adnoc’s headcount is up 13 per cent this year, and by a quarter over the past two years, to about 32,750. The actual number, however, which Adnoc has never disclosed, is now over 40,000, one person familiar with the matter said. “As we continue to grow our business, we are creating exciting opportunities for our talented workforce as we accelerate the transformation, decarbonisation of and future-proof our company,” the Adnoc spokesperson said in response to questions about hiring.
Michele Fiorentino, who was chief investment officer from 2017-2020, confirmed to Reuters that he recently returned to Adnoc from US oil services firm Baker Hughes as executive vice president for low carbon solutions and business development.
Other recent hires include Bart Cornelissen, who left Deloitte to become Adnoc’s senior vice president for group strategy and portfolio last month, according to LinkedIn.
Michael Hafner, a long-time investment banker in the energy sector – most recently at Greenhill & Co and previously at Deutsche Bank and UBS – also joined Adnoc last month as a senior adviser to the executive office for business development.
Other senior managers have recently been hired from Western firms including Morgan Stanley, HSBC, Natixis , Litasco, Borealis, TotalEnergies, Shell and Eni, according to LinkedIn.
Recent senior hires for Adnoc’s trading arms include alumni of Gunvor, Litasco, Shell and TotalEnergies, the employment network showed.
The UAE firm was looking to buy energy trader Gunvor Group last year but talks fell apart because Adnoc wanted a controlling stake and Gunvor’s shareholder only wanted to cede a minority, sources familiar with the matter have said.
“Adnoc wants to expand in Europe, whether it was through Gunvor or organically,” a source with knowledge of the matter said. “Now that the Gunvor deal is off the table, it will focus on organic growth.”
https://www.khaleejtimes.com/business/abu-dhabis-adnoc-bets-on-global-expansion
October 8, 2023
VPC To Buy Prestige Fabricators
VPC Group USA plans to buy former Klaussner subsidiary Prestige Fabricators
Sale would reopen 2 former foam production plants that were closed Aug. 7 when Klaussner also ceased operations
ASHEBORO, N.C. — VPC Group USA, a producer of foam and fiber material, is planning to purchase Klaussner subsidiary Prestige Fabricators for about $7 million as part of a sale of the company’s assets.
The company has sought court approval to buy the assets of Prestige, which also produces foam materials for upholstery. As part of the purchase, it plans to continue the operations, which employed about 27 at its foam plant and 30 at its fabrication plant prior to their closing on Aug. 7. VPC plans to extend offers of employment to some of these workers.
When it closed on Aug. 7, Prestige effectively ceased operations at two foam manufacturing facilities, including a foam plant and a fabrication plant in Randolph County, North Carolina, where Klaussner was based. Klaussner also ceased operations Aug. 7, putting 884 people out of work, including those employed by Prestige. The defunct company went into receivership soon after.
Legal sources describe a receivership as a court-appointed tool that helps creditors recover funds that are owed to them while also helping companies avoid a bankruptcy. This process also is said to help make it easier for a lender to collect funds owed to them in the event a borrow defaults on a loan.
“Based on VPC’s reputation as an industry leading foam manufacturer, the receiver believes that VPC has made a good faith offer and has the ability to consummate the transaction,” Focus Management Group, the general receiver for Klaussner, and Focus agent Michael Grau said in a court filing earlier this month. The deadline for objections to the purchase is 5 p.m. Sept. 28 and the closing date has been scheduled for Oct. 6.
The court filing obtained by Home News Now said that about seven parties expressed interest in Prestige and six executed nondisclosure agreements. Two of those submitted purchase offers.
VPC’s offer was accepted as part of the negotiations and it included a deposit of 10% of the proposed purchase price, with $50,000 as a nonrefundable portion. VPC proposes a cash closing with the intent to acquire substantially all of Prestige’s assets. This includes machinery and equipment, accounts receivable, assignable contracts, personal property leases identified by the purchaser, technology and intellectual property and all proprietary rights to the sellers’ ERP system, to name several key fixed assets.
The filing by the receiver states that “the court should approve the sale to VPC and authorize the parties to enter into the asset purchase agreement because the sale is in the best interest of the receivership estate, its creditors and other interested parties. … VPC’s purchase of the Prestige assets would yield $7 million to the receivership estate, which in the receiver’s business judgment is substantially more than a liquidation process, including more value than prior appraisals have indicated on a liquidation basis accounting for costs of sale.”
It added that VPC’s experience as a foam manufacturer “will aid VPC in the rehiring of former employees that were terminated when Prestige ceased operations in August. Such employment opportunities would likely be unavailable in a liquidation process or if the Prestige assets were otherwise sold to a buyer who did not plan to operate the Prestige business as a going concern. If VPC is able to take over the business operations pursuant to the proposed sale, the impact on the individuals previously employed by Prestige will be mitigated.”
October 5, 2023
Tosoh Plans MDI Splitter in Vietnam
Japan’s Tosoh to build MDI splitter in Vietnam
Published date: 02 October 2023
Japanese petrochemical producer Tosoh plans to build a methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) splitter in south Vietnam’s Ba Ria–Vung Tau province, targeting to begin commercial operations by October 2026.
Tosoh plans to operate the splitter, which will have manufacturing capacity of 100,000 t/yr of monomeric and polymeric MDIs, using crude MDI as a feedstock. MDI is used as feedstock to produce polyurethane. It aims to start construction from November 2024 and complete the splitter by June 2026.
The company will bring the crude MDI from Japan to the splitter in Vietnam. Tosoh produces 400,000 t/yr of crude MDI at its Nanyo plant in south Japan’s Yamaguchi prefecture.
Tosoh has an 85,000 t/yr splitter in China and another at its Nanyo plant of undisclosed output capacity, although its said annual production is 400,000t. Its MDI production will be unchanged even after the launch of the Vietnamese splitter, as Tosoh plans to modify manufacturing in Japan and China based on demand.
It also plans to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary Tosoh Vietnam Polyurethane by January next year to enhance MDI sales in southeast Asia.
By Nanami Oki
October 2, 2023
PCC Plans
PCC makes progress on plan for Oxyalkylates production in the USA
Duisburg, September 15, 2023. PCC is making progress on its plan to establish an Oxyalkylates production in the USA, thereby advancing the expansion of the PCC Group’s core business areas in the important US market. PCC has now reached a milestone at the possible location in Bay City, Matagorda County, Texas, on the Gulf of Mexico. On September 15, 2023, the project company PCC Chemicals Corporation signed a terminable lease agreement with the Port of Bay City for a property in the immediate vicinity of the port there. Although the site selection and final investment decision is far from over, the contract with the port ensures that PCC Chemicals Corporation has the opportunity to intensively examine an investment at this location as part of due diligence.
“Working with the Port of Bay City and fellow entities over these past two years have been a most enjoyable experience,” said Dr. Peter Wenzel, CEO of PCC SE, and emphasized: “We still have many several project milestones to achieve and will require additional partnerships for the economic development of the project.”
Contract signing between PCC and Port of Bay City on September 15, 2023. Dr. Peter Wenzel, CEO of PCC SE (3rd from left), Waldemar Preussner, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of PCC SE (6th from left), and Peter Berger, Head of Legal Department (7th from left), together with representatives from Bay City.
Bay City Port Director George Harrison said: “This is a proud day for Matagorda County. We’ve been pursuing PCC Chemicals Corporation for two years and it feels good to secure their lease agreement.”
The region at the port of Bay City on the Gulf of Mexico is a possible location for a planned new production of Oxyalkylates (special non-ionic surfactants and polyether polyols) in the USA. In 2022, PCC SE founded the project company PCC Chemicals Corporation which is examining the development and construction of petrochemical production plants in the USA. PCC is currently setting up an Oxyalkylates production in Malaysia in a joint venture with PETRONAS Chemicals Group Berhad to cover the Asian market. The planned project in the USA would further advance the expansion of the PCC´s core business in the Group segments Polyols & Derivatives and Surfactants & Derivatives in the US market, too.
Contract signing between PCC and Port of Bay City on September 15, 2023. Dr. Peter Wenzel, CEO of PCC SE (3rd from left), Waldemar Preussner, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of PCC SE (2nd from left), and Peter Berger, Head of Legal Department (left), together with representatives from Bay City.
Profile of PCC SE
Headquartered in Duisburg, Germany, PCC SE is the parent and investment holding company of the globally active PCC Group with its approx. 3,400 employees. Its Group companies have core competencies in the production of chemical feedstocks and specialty chemicals, silicon and silicon derivatives, and in container logistics. An investor committed to the longer term, PCC SE concentrates on continuously increasing the enterprise value of its portfolio companies through sustainable investments and the ongoing creation of new value. The largest chemical producers of the PCC Group are PCC Rokita SA, a major chlorine manufacturer and Eastern Europe’s leading producer of polyols, and PCC Exol SA, one of Europe’s most advanced surfactant manufacturers. PCC BakkiSilicon hf. operates in Iceland one of the world’s most modern and climate-friendly silicon production facilities. PCC was founded in 1993 by Waldemar Preussner, sole shareholder of PCC SE, who today holds the position of Chairman of the Supervisory Board. The PCC Group generated consolidated sales of around € 1.3 billion and earnings before interest/financial result, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of some € 292.0 million in fiscal 2022, with capital expenditures in the same year amounting to around € 116.3 million.
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