U.S. Appeals Court upholds USD14 MM judgment against Exxon

The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans upheld a USD14.25 MM judgment against ExxonMobil Corp for pollution from its Baytown, Texas, refining and petrochemical complex, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

The judgment stems from a U.S. Clean Air Act lawsuit brought by two environmental groups, Environment Texas and the Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter. This is Exxon’s second appeal of a Houston U.S. district court’s ruling that Exxon was responsible for repeated releases of pollution from the refinery and chemical plants in Baytown.

Exxon stipulated the Baytown complex had 16,286 days of violations between October 2005 and September 2013, which included multiple simultaneous violations. “While we respect the court’s opinion, we disagree with the decision,” said Exxon spokeswoman Julie King. “We have acted responsibly and in accordance with regulatory requirements. We are reviewing the decision and considering next steps."

Luke Metzger, executive director of Environment Texas, called on Exxon to accept the repeated decisions in the case against the company.

"After 13 years of litigation – including a three-week trial, two appeals, two remands of the case to the trial court for additional findings, and three appellate decisions against them – it is long past time for Exxon to accept responsibility and finally pay what it owes to the public for years of illegal, toxic pollution,” Metzger said.

The case was brought by the two groups under a provision of the Clean Air Act that allows citizens to sue when government agencies have failed to prevent pollution.

As per MRC, Exxon Mobil is in the process of transitioning its 30% stake in a Russian oil development "to another party," according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Exxon Mobil announced in March its withdrawal from the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project due to the situation around Ukraine. In the same month, the company announced the recall of its American employees employed in oil and gas projects in Russia.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
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Funds advised by SK Capital Partners, and Edgewater Capital Partners private investment firms focused on the specialty materials and specialty chemicals sectors, announced having entered into exclusive negotiations following submission of their binding offer to acquire the scintillation and photonic crystals business of Saint-Gobain, S.A., said the companies.

SK Capital will lead the investment with Edgewater acting as a meaningful minority shareholder with Board involvement. “We are incredibly excited to partner with the Saint-Gobain Crystals team as we embark on the next phase of the Company’s growth”

Headquartered in Hiram, Ohio with global facilities in the United States, France, and India, Saint-Gobain Crystals is recognized as a worldwide technology leader and provider of single scintillation crystals for radiation detection applications, as well as sapphire and garnet substrates for photonics and power electronics applications. The Company differentiates itself with deep R&D capabilities and expertise in crystal growth, packaging, and integration, as well as unique intellectual property supported by a portfolio of 174 patents. Saint-Gobain Crystals is fully vertically integrated with crystal purification, growth, cutting & finishing, packaging, and electronics integration capabilities.

SK Capital, Edgewater and Saint-Gobain are collaborating on a seamless transaction plan to enable the Company to continue serving its global customer base, employees and stakeholders. The definitive agreement between Saint-Gobain, SK Capital and Edgewater will be able to be finalized following completion of customary employee consultations within the Saint-Gobain group. The completion of the transaction is subject to the approval of certain regulatory authorities and should be effective before the end of the year.

We remind, SABIC SK Nexlene Company (SSNC), a joint venture between SABIC and SK Geo Centric, has announced plans to expand the capacity of its plant in the South Korean city of Ulsan to produce advanced material solutions.
The expansion, which is due to come on stream in the second quarter of 2024, targets applications in solar panels, vehicles, footwear, and flexible packaging.
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PPG has announced that Rebecca Liebert, Executive VP, will leave the company to explore an external opportunity, effective Sept. 16, 2022, said the company.

Rebecca’s new global executive opportunity, which will be announced soon, is a true testament to her strong leadership capabilities and speaks highly of the top talent that has been developed and nurtured at PPG.

“Her proven experience has been extremely valuable as we’ve navigated through the last several years of unprecedented challenges in the world and within our businesses," said Michael McGarry, PPG chairman and CEO.

We remind, PPG will invest USD11 million to double the production capacity of its powder coatings plant in San Juan del Rio, Mexico. The expansion project is expected to be completed by mid-2023 and will allow the plant to meet the expected future demand for powder coatings in Mexico.

PPG is a leading supplier of powder coatings to the automotive, transportation, appliance, furniture and other markets. The company expanded the business with its 2020 acquisition of Alpha Coating Technologies, which manufactures powder coatings for light industrial applications and heat-sensitive substrates, and its 2021 acquisition of Worwag, which makes liquid, powder and film coatings for industrial and automotive applications. PPG recently agreed to acquire the powder coatings business of Arsonsisi, including a manufacturing plant in Verbania, Italy.
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The Lubrizol Corporation, a Berkshire Hathaway Company, announced that Rebecca Liebert has been named the company’s President and CEO, effective October 3, 2022, said the company.

She succeeds Mary Rhinehart who has served as interim President and CEO since March of this year. Rhinehart will continue as the company’s Board Chair. Liebert was most recently Executive Vice President of PPG Industries, a global leader in paints, coatings and specialty materials. She joined PPG in June 2018 leading the automotive OEM coatings business, including PPG's mobility initiatives. Her final responsibilities included PPG's global industrial segment businesses, Asia Pacific region oversight, and functional responsibility for global procurement, resin and industrial segment manufacturing.

Prior to PPG, Liebert served as President and CEO of Honeywell UOP, a leading international supplier to the petroleum refining, gas processing, petrochemical production and major manufacturing industries. Prior to joining Honeywell, Liebert served as President of Reynolds Food Packaging.

"Rebecca is a dynamic, passionate and results-driven leader,” said Greg Abel, Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway’s non-insurance operations. “She brings tremendous experience and a record of accomplishments in leading global organizations and driving operational excellence. Most importantly, she is an individual of the highest integrity – a vital quality for leaders. I thank Mary Rhinehart for her strong interim leadership at Lubrizol and for helping position the company for future growth and success."

We remind, Lubrizol Corporation announces a global collaboration project with Suzano, the world’s leading eucalyptus pulp and paper producer. This market-leading partnership will co-develop natural-based ingredients using renewable materials to the beauty, personal and home care markets. The new relationship combines Lubrizol science, formulation, and market expertise with Suzano knowledge in all varieties and applications of eucalyptus bioproduct cellulosic biomaterials.

The Lubrizol Corporation, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is an innovative specialty chemical company that apart from its production develops and supplies technologies to customers in the global transportation, industrial and consumer markets. Lubrizol is providing innovative solutions for its customers high-performance application needs and remains committed to ongoing investment in its CPVC capabilities that support future growth. With headquarters in Wickliffe, Ohio, Lubrizol owns and operates manufacturing facilities in 17 countries, as well as sales and technical offices around the world. Founded in 1928, Lubrizol has approximately 8,000 employees worldwide.
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Trinseo, a specialty material solutions provider, announced that it has appointed Han Hendriks to the newly created role of Chief Technology Officer (CTO), effective Oct. 1, 2022, said the company.

As CTO, Hendriks will be a member of Trinseo’s executive leadership team and will be based in The Netherlands. In this role, he will drive the development of differentiated technology and innovation, allowing Trinseo to meet unfilled and unrecognized customer needs and develop sustainable solutions across Trinseo’s innovation pillars.

"We are delighted to have Han join us during this critical moment in our company’s transformational journey to become a specialty material solutions provider,” said Frank Bozich, Trinseo President and Chief Executive Officer. “As we continue our journey, and as part of an effort to define a path forward, Han’s experience in setting a vision and strategy for technology and developing transformational technologies will help us achieve our goals."

Prior to joining Trinseo, Hendriks was Chief Technology Officer at Yanfeng, one of the world's leading automotive suppliers, headquartered in Shanghai with eight R&D centers globally. He was responsible at the group level for the company’s technology and “smart cabin” vision and strategy, as well as portfolio management. He also led the design and development of new products from research and initial idea to market launch including technical sales and marketing, technology M&A and partnerships, and the initiation and global upscaling of Yanfeng’s new business incubators. Prior to Yanfeng, Hendriks enjoyed a 16-year career at Johnson Controls, holding multiple roles of increasing responsibility. Earlier in his career, he worked for companies such as Fluke (Danaher) and Oce (Canon).

Hendriks holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Architectural Design from the Academy of Fine Arts in Maastricht and an MBA from the University of Westminster, London, and he successfully completed a post-graduate Industrial Design program at the Universita Internazionale Dell 'Arte in Florence.

As per MRC, Trinseo and GMP Group plan to collaborate on a polystyrene (PS) recycling plant in the Netherlands.
The plant - with a minimum capacity of 25,000 tonnes/year and expected to start up in 2024 - will purify PS waste and deliver high-quality recycled PS pellets via a “ Super Clean recycling process,” they said in a statement. It would be built and operated by GMP.

Trinseo is a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber. Trinseo's technology is used by customers in industries such as home appliances, automotive, building & construction, carpet, consumer electronics, consumer goods, electrical & lighting, medical, packaging, paper & paperboard, rubber goods and tires. Formerly known as Styron, Trinseo completed its renaming process in 1Q 2015. Trinseo had approximately $4.8 billion in net sales in 2021 and has 26 manufacturing sites and one recycling facility around the world and approximately 3,400 employees.
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