Clariant placed a green bond in the amount of CHF 175 mln

Clariant, a focused, sustainable, and innovative specialty chemical company, yesterday successfully priced its first green bond. The CHF 175 million green bond has a coupon of 2.717 % and a 2027 maturity date, said the company.

"The green bond issuance under our Green Financing Framework exactly fits our focus on sustainability as part of our purpose-led growth strategy. We view this green financing option as a key contribution to sustainability across the Group, allowing sustainability driven bond investors to participate in the sustainability leadership of our company. Its Swiss franc denomination also underlines our commitment to the Swiss market and fits perfectly in our maturity profile,” said Bill Collins, Chief Financial Officer of Clariant.

An amount equal to the net proceeds from the bond issuance will be allocated to the financing and/or refinancing of investments in Eligible Assets as established by Clariant within its Green Financing Framework. Eligible Assets promote the transition towards a low-carbon and environmentally sustainable society, as determined by Clariant. Proceeds will be allocated to capital expenditures, acquisitions, joint ventures and research and development within the Eligible Asset Categories of this Framework (circular economy adopted products, production technologies and processes and/or certified eco-efficient products, renewable energy and energy efficiency, pollution prevention and control).

This transaction emphasizes Clariant’s sustainability leadership and represents clear progress in the implementation of its 2030 roadmap to achieve its science-based climate targets. The financing and/or refinancing of Eligible Asset with the green bond proceeds will contribute to achieving our ambitious targets. Between 2019 and 2030, Clariant targets a 40 % absolute reduction in scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions and a 14 % absolute reduction in scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions from purchased goods and services. These science-based targets are accompanied by intensity reduction targets for the key environmental parameters in its operations.

ISS ESG, a leading ESG data and rating provider, gave a second-party opinion confirming the alignment of the framework with Green Bond Principles and Green Loan Principles and the sustainability quality of the eligibility criteria. S&P Global Ratings has granted Clariant’s Green Bond a BBB- rating.

UBS Investment Bank and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (SEB) acted as joint lead managers for this green bond issue. The application for admission to trading on the SIX Swiss Exchange will be submitted. The Green Bond is expected to settle on 26 September 2022.

We remind, Clariant has been awarded a major contract by Wanhua Chemical Group to supply catalysts for its new maleic anhydride plant, which will be one of the largest in the world. Designed to produce 200 kilotons of maleic anhydride annually, the plant will rely on Clariant’s SynDane catalyst for the production process. The facility will be located in Yantai city, Shandong province, and is scheduled to commence operation in 2023.
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As a shareholder of Novatek, TotalEnergies asked the management of Novatek on August 25 for information on what happens of the gas condensates produced by the Termokarstovoye field in Russia, in order to shed the fullest light on the recent controversy initiated by French daily newspaper, Le Monde, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

TotalEnergies publishes the response given to TotalEnergies by Novatek: "All of the unstable condensate produced by our subsidiaries and joint ventures, including Terneftegas, comes into our Purovsky condensate processing plant. The Purovsky Plant also stabilizes condensate from other Russian producers, whose share in the plant's load does not exceed 20%.

The entirety of stable condensate produced at the Purovsky Plant from the feedstock coming from NOVATEK's subsidiaries and affiliates, including Terneftegas, is delivered to the Ust-Luga processing complex in the Leningrad Region. The range of products derived during processing at the Ust-Luga Complex includes jet fuel (Jet A-1) that is exclusively exported outside Russia, and it does not even have the certification to be sold inside the country.

Therefore, it is clear that the media publications and calls to investigate activities of TotalEnergies in our joint companies have absolutely no basis in fact." As a result, this confirms what TotalEnergies published on August 24 stating that “No, TotalEnergies does not produce jet fuel for the Russian army”.

TotalEnergies seeks to end this unfounded controversy which is damaging the reputation of the Company and has decided to take all appropriate legal action to put an end to it if necessary.

We remind, TotalEnergies signed today with Sonatrach, Occidental and Eni an extension of its Production Sharing Contract for a period of 25 years for onshore Blocks 404a and 208 in the Berkine basin, in Eastern Algeria. This contract, signed under the new Algerian Hydrocarbon Law published in 2019, will allow to develop additional liquids hydrocarbon resources, while reducing these fields carbon intensity through a dedicated carbon reduction program. The opportunity to develop and valorize associated gas resources will be studied by the partners, thus increasing export potential towards Europe.

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Arlon Graphics, LLC, a subsidiary of FLEXcon Holdings Trust, have partnered with Westlake Vinnolit to advance their sustainability contributions by expanding GreenVin® PVC resin to Arlon’s product portfolio, said the company.

Arlon is a global leader in the graphics films industry, and a key part of their strategy is a commitment to furthering sustainability and climate protection. Now, the company will utilize Vinnolit GreenVin® PVC resin, a component used in the production of graphic films for automotive and vehicle fleet wraps. GreenVin® PVC is manufactured with power from 100% renewable sources, based on high-quality renewable energy certificates (Guarantees of Origin / GOs), supporting climate protection and the reduction of CO2 emissions.

Depending on the PVC type, the carbon-dioxide savings of GreenVin® PVC are about 25% compared to conventionally produced Vinnolit PVC. The respective carbon footprint for the entire Vinnolit product portfolio was calculated by Sustainable AG in accordance with the ISO 14067 standard. Review and certification are carried out by TUV Rheinland.

"Arlon’s selection of GreenVin® PVC is driven by our own commitment to provide `greener‘ solutions and by our customers’ demands for environmentally responsible products. We continue to explore innovative ways to incorporate sustainable materials into our offerings and to reduce our carbon footprint. GreenVin® allows us to do this all while maintaining the performance and quality our customers have come to expect from Arlon,” says Adam Bratter, Vice President of Global Product for Arlon.

"With GreenVin®, we are working to make the entire Westlake Vinnolit product portfolio more environmentally friendly and sustainable,” Dr. Karl-Martin Schellerer, Managing Director of Westlake Vinnolit, added. “Technical properties and highest product quality of our PVC grades remain unchanged. At the same time, we help environmentally conscious companies and thought leaders in their field reduce their own carbon footprint and that of their products."

We remind, PVC and caustic soda manufacturer Vinnolit, a Westlake company, will be renamed Westlake Vinnolit.
As part of its ongoing growth, the parent company Westlake is standardizing the brand identity of the entire Group.

Westlake Corporation is a global manufacturer and supplier of materials and innovative products that enhance life every day. Headquartered in Houston, with operations in Asia, Europe, and North America, we provide the building blocks for vital solutions — from housing and construction, to packaging and healthcare, to automotive and consumer.
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Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the country's largest fuel retailer, announced it will achieve Net Zero operational emissions by 2046 and invest over Rs 2 lakh crore to meet this target, said Indiatimes.

IOC Chairman Shrikant Madhav Vaidya made the announcement today during the Company’s 63rd Annual General Meeting. The year 2046 coincides with India completing 99 years of independence and the celebration of its 100th Independence Day.

"As we embark on the net-zero journey in the right earnest, we already have a well-crafted blueprint in place. It adopts a multi-pronged approach to take us gradually towards the net zero destination. We have envisaged an investment of over Rs 2 lakh crore will be required to achieve the target by the year 2046," Vaidya said.

He added the company has been pursuing a green agenda to steer the country’s green energy transition and is already working on emission mitigation pathwayslike green hydrogen, biofuels, renewables, carbon offsetting through ecosystem restoration and Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS).

Currently, IndianOil's Green House Gas (GHG) emission, emanating majorly from the company’s refining operations, stands around 21.5 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCO2e) per annum.

We remind, Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd, (CPCL), belonging to Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, said on August 23 its board of directors has approved the proposal for the formation of a joint venture company for implementing the refinery and petrochemical complex. The nine million tonne per annum (MTPA) refinery project at Cauvery Basin Refinery, Nagapattinam district, Tamil Nadu, is being set up at an estimated investment of Rs 31,580 crore.
The investors include Chennai Petroleum Corporation, Indian Oil Corporation and other seed equity investors, namely Axis Bank, HDFC Life Insurance Company, ICICI Bank, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company and SBI Life Insurance Company.

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is an Indian state oil and gas corporation headquartered in New Delhi.
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Kumho Petrochemical has announced a major investment initiative which will see the South Korean group pumping KRW6,000 billion (EUR5.5 billion) into existing and new businesses over the next five years, said European-rubber-journal.

As part of the initiative, Kumho will invest KRW3,300 billion in its ‘core business areas’, which includes nitrile butadiene latex (NB latex) production and styrene solution butadiene rubber (SSBR) manufacturing.

The group aims to expand NB latex production, a key material for rubber gloves, in order to maintain its ‘top global position’, said the Seoul-based supplier in a recent statement.

“As the global hygiene concept is continuously strengthened, latex gloves are expected to become a representative medical and hygiene product along with masks,” Kumho said. The group said the investment will go towards filling a “gap in the technology and production capacity” of the material.

Furthermore, the initiative will involve investments within Kumho’s SSBR operations as it targets No.1 position in Asia. In addition to SSBR capabilities, Kumho said it would also invest in its ‘fine chemical products’ such as synthetic rubber antioxidants and vulcanisation accelerators.

“We are discussing detailed strategies to strengthen global competitiveness, and are devising strategies to maximise profitability,” it added. The Seoul company did not provide further details for the planned investments, but the announcement comes after a series of expansion projects introduced last year.

In June last year, Kumho unveiled an ‘aggressive EUR190-million investment’ in a new nitrile rubber latex plant at its Ulsan petrochemical complex.

Later in the year, the group announced that it is "more than doubling" its SSBR production capacity from 63 kilotonnes per annum (ktpa) to 123ktpa by the end of 2022.

The Korean supplier is also considering a KRW2,700 billion investment in “future growth engines” such as carbon nanotubes, for secondary battery materials, and engineering plastics for electric vehicles. It also plans to respond to the rapidly changing industry trends by promoting digitalisation across its operations.
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