Dorf Ketal to acquire Clariant land oil business in North America

Dorf Ketal to acquire Clariant land oil business in North America

Clariant and Dorf Ketal, two of the world's leading specialty chemical products and services companies, have today announced a definitive agreement for Dorf Ketal to acquire Clariant's North American (NORAM) Land Oil business, a provider of chemical technologies and services to the North American oil and gas industry, said the company.

The transaction announced today is subject to regulatory and other customary closing conditions and is expected to be finalized during the first quarter of 2023.

Clariant's NORAM Land Oil business, which posted 2021 revenues of USD113 million, represents an exciting growth opportunity for Dorf Ketal. Once completed, the acquisition will include all the assets of Clariant's NORAM Land Oil business, including a team of 170 employees in North America, a technology portfolio of more than 40 patent families, and manufacturing units located in Bakersfield, California; Midland, Texas; and Black Hills, Texas producing more than 2,000 formulations for drilling, production, and stimulation.

"This acquisition will bring additional strategic assets, innovative new technology, talented people, and strong customer relationships into Dorf Ketal," said Sudhir Menon, Chairman, of Dorf Ketal Chemicals India Private Limited. "Upon completion, it will enable our continued growth in North America – a significant and growing market for energy services, further aligning with our global focus and commitment to providing innovative services throughout the energy sector."

"The divestment of the North American Land Oil business is another logical step in repositioning Clariant's portfolio towards true specialty chemicals and in our sustainability transformation journey. With its strong reputation as a supplier of premium oilfield chemical products and services, its geographical presence, and its solid customer relationships, Dorf Ketal is the right owner for the combined business, for our employees, customers, and other stakeholders," said Conrad Keijzer, CEO at Clariant.

We remind, Clariant will create a second production line at its new CHF 60 million state of the art facility for Exolit OP halogen-free flame retardants currently under construction in Daya Bay, China. This additional CHF 40 million investment will further expand access to innovative and sustainable fire protection solutions and related technical expertise to support the significant growth of engineering plastics applications in E-mobility and electrical & electronic segments.

mrchub.com

Orbia reports Q3 fall in income on lower sales

Orbia reports Q3 fall in income on lower sales

The vinyls business of the Mexican producer Orbia reported on Wednesday a year-on-year decline in earnings because of lower sales and higher costs, said the company.

The following table shows the Q3 performance of Orbia's Polymer Solutions business, which includes Vestolit and Alphagary. It makes polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Revenue fell because of lower volumes and lower prices for general resins, Orbia said. Demand fell, and key markets had greater access to lower cost PVC.

In particular, COVID lockdowns in China encouraged producers there to export PVC to make up for the decline in domestic demand. These trends more than offset the benefits of higher prices for Orbia's specialty resins and derivatives.

Earnings fell because of lower volumes as well as higher costs for feedstock and energy, particularly in Europe. Orbia's other business groups include Building and Infrastructure, Precision Agriculture, Connectivity Solutions and Fluorinated Solutions.

In this October, Orbia's Fluorinated Solutions business Koura, a global leader in the development, manufacturing and supply of fluoroproducts, on 19 Oct 2022 announced it has received a USD100 M award from the US Department of Energy (DOE) as part of the first set of projects funded by the President's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and the electrical grid and for materials and components currently imported from other countries. This award supports state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery manufacturing for supply chain security and competitiveness.
mrchub.com

Clariant launches new additives at K 2022 to support plastics sustainable evolution

Clariant launches new additives at K 2022 to support plastics sustainable evolution

Clariant launches new additives at K 2022 to support plastics sustainable evolution, said the company.

K 2022 visitors can look forward to new Clariant additive solutions to progress more sustainable plastics and reduce resource use. New developments give applications greater resilience to support longer use and reuse on the path to circularity. Plus, solve production challenges while achieving better efficiency and lower carbon footprint during compounding and processing (Hall 8a Booth J11).

“By extending a product’s service life and by boosting reuse potential, the plastics industry can contribute positively towards reducing wasteful consumption, and increase circularity in key segments. Adopting ways to reduce material waste and energy use in production brings further sustainability advantages and improves product carbon footprint. With these new additives, including renewable-based solutions, in our portfolios, we’re excited to offer plastic processors and value chains more support to collaborate and further innovate together,” comments Martin John, Head of Advanced Surface Solutions at Clariant.

Surface aesthetics play a crucial role in the perceived quality of consumer goods. Clariant’s new renewable raw material-based anti-scratch additive for polypropylene (PP) and thermoplastic olefins (TPO) formulations – Licowax® AS 100 TP - enables molded plastic goods across a wide range of consumer applications to maintain their original look and feel for longer. This offers significant potential to extend service life and improve properties’ retention and parts’ reuse.

The new additive helps to prevent scratches and mars on the surface of goods during handling, transportation, and end-use. This is particularly beneficial for otherwise scuff-prone applications such as interior automotive parts like dashboards and door panels, household appliance casings, cosmetics packaging, and lightweight luggage.

We remind, Clariant will create a second production line at its new CHF 60 million state of the art facility for Exolit OP halogen-free flame retardants currently under construction in Daya Bay, China. This additional CHF 40 million investment will further expand access to innovative and sustainable fire protection solutions and related technical expertise to support the significant growth of engineering plastics applications in E-mobility and electrical & electronic segments.
mrchub.com

Valero CEO says U.S. energy secretary told shuttered refineries won't restart

Valero CEO says U.S. energy secretary told shuttered refineries won't restart

Valero Chief Executive Joe Gorder said this week U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was told at a recent White House meeting with energy executives that refineries shuttered in the last few years won't return production, said Rueters.

"The one interesting thing that came out of it, too, was there was consideration for the ability to restart refining capacity that had been shut down," Gorder said. "And I think the general sentiment was that wasn't going to happen."

We remind, Oil refiner Valero Energy said it expects the Biden administration to continue releasing oil from the U.S. emergency reserve through year-end and will continue buying barrels. President Joe Biden last week announced a plan to release 15 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) - part of a record 180 million-barrel release that began in May. The United States is ready to tap reserves again next year if needed, he said.

mrchub.com

Petronas reports fire at Johor refinery and petrochemical complex

Petronas reports fire at Johor refinery and petrochemical complex

Malaysian state energy firm Petronas said a fire and explosion occurred on Thursday at the Pengerang refinery-petrochemical complex, a joint venture it operates with Saudi Aramco in the southern Malaysian state of Johor, said Straitstimes.

No casualties were reported and the incident poses no immediate threat to the surrounding communities, Petronas said in a statement.

The fire occurred at one of the interconnecting pipes at the Pengerang Integrated Complex at 1540 local time and was completely extinguished in about an hour, Petronas said.

The 300,000 barrel-per-day complex has seen such accidents before.

In March 2020, five people were killed in a fire at the complex, forcing it to close for more than two years. It restarted in May, MRC reported.

Pengerang in located in south-east Johor, across from Pulau Tekong.
mrchub.com