Chemical
Industry News Editor Christa Semko Every two weeks, Christa will
bring you the latest chemical industry news from around the world. If you have a
press release that you'd like to share with us, please mail it to us through our online
contact form here.
DuPont will cut another 2,000 jobs, with few signs that economic conditions have improved for some of its biggest customers. The company had already announced 2,500 layoffs in addition to eliminating about 10,000 contractor jobs.
BPA Ban
The Connecticut House of Representatives has voted to ban the sale, manufacture or distribution of infant formula and baby food in containers made with Bisphenol-A. The ban, which also affects reusable food and drink containers with the substance, would take effect October 1, 2011. The bill is now moving to the state Senate.
Unit Sale
Celanese Corp. has entered into an agreement to sell its polyvinyl alcohol business to Sekisui Chemical Co. for about $173 million. The company expects the deal to be completed by midyear. The transaction includes facilities in Calvert City, Kentucky; Pasadena, Texas; one unit within a complex at Tarragona, Spain; and resources from the company’s HoustonTechnologyCenter.
New Business Unit
Dow Water Solutions and Rohm and Haas Ion Exchange Resins have combined their respective businesses, forming Dow Water & Process Solutions, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company. The new business entity is based in Edina, Minnesota and is a result of Dow’s acquisition of Rohm and Haas. The acquisition was completed April 1.
ExxonMobil Chemical has broken ground on its technology center in Shanghai, China. The new center will provide product applications support as well as strengthen the company’s ability to serve its customers in China and the region. The initial investment in the technology center and related equipment is $70 million. The facility will house laboratories and product demonstration facilities, providing applications technical service and a range of application development capabilities for ExxonMobil's polymer products and plasticizers. Initially, it will have approximately 200 employees and is expected to be operational in 2010.
Potential Divestiture
Dow Europe GmbH has announced that it is exploring divestiture options for its Synthetic Rubber business. The exploration is driven by Dow’s ongoing efforts to streamline and improve the company’s portfolio of businesses. The business is located in central Germany with access to all key markets for synthetic rubber and includes five production plants and a research center.
Deal Signed
Sinopec Corp. has signed a framework agreement on strategic cooperation with Beihai city to set up a petrochemical zone in its TieshanPort. The first step of the two-phase petrochemical base project, requiring a total investment budget of 10.4 billion yuan, is to rebuild the Beihai refinery in a new place, construct a port with an annual crude oil throughput of 300,000 tons and a crude oil storage facility with a capacity of 3.2 million cubic meters.
LogisticsCenter
The Dow Chemical Company will spend $200 million to create a logistics center of chemicals supply chain in Tianjin. The logistics center will provide liquid chemicals storage service and could handle 9 million tons of liquid chemicals per year. It will include liquid chemical tank areas as well as associated facilities, shipping dock, public utilities and other infrastructure.
Job Cuts
BASF SE will cut at least 2,000 jobs this year. The company did not specify where jobs would be cut, but said that it experienced lower sales and profits in all regions.
