Azelis strengthens footprint in Latin America with the acquisition of Localpack in Colombia

Azelis, a leading global innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, announces that it has signed an agreement to acquire Localpack S.A., a specialty chemical distributor active in both the life sciences and industrial chemicals segments in Colombia, said the company.

The acquisition represents a strategic expansion of the Group’s footprint, consistent with its growth objectives in the region.

Localpack is one of the leading specialty chemical distributors in the domestic market. The company employs a staff of 27 people, and operates an application laboratory close to Medellin, serving customers across Colombia. Localpack’s long-standing relationships with global and regional principals, and the technical product expertise that it has built over the years, expand Azelis’ lateral value chain across Latin America. This expansion will allow Azelis to serve customers better and accelerate its growth in the region.

The transaction follows several key initiatives in Latin America by Azelis in recent years, including the establishment of a regional innovation center (RIC) in Mexico in 2022, the acquisition of ROCSA S.A. in Colombia in 2022, and Vogler Ingredients Ltda. in Brazil earlier this year. The addition of Localpack’s portfolio of products and capabilities marks another significant milestone in Azelis’ growth strategy in the region.

We remind, Azelis, a leading innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, is pleased to announce that it has opened a new laboratory dedicated to Lubricants & Metal Working Fluids (L&MWF) in the north of Milan, Italy. The facility has been transferred to benefit from more space and from the potential to further scale its capabilities in 2024 and, thus, better serve the EMEA region as a whole. The laboratory is fully operational and serves as a valuable resource for Azelis' teams, customers, and principals.

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Borealis is proud to announce that mtm plastics in Niedergebra, Germany, has been awarded the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC PLUS). mtm is a member of the Borealis Group, and this move marks another step in the EverMinds journey to accelerate action in plastics circularity, said the company.

Each year, mtm processes around 60 metric kilotons of used plastic packaging from post-consumer sources to produce high quality polyolefin recyclates, including polypropylene (PP) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) for manufacturing injection moulding products. With this certification, mtm now stands as one of very few ISCC PLUS certified mechanical recycling suppliers in Germany.

ISCC PLUS is a global certification that covers the entire supply chain based on mass balance accounting, from raw material to final product, guaranteeing compliance with highest environmental and social standards. By establishing a chain of custody, it ensures traceability for both recyclate-based and renewable-based materials. It also verifies that the mass balance accounting follows predefined and transparent rules.

The latest ISCC PLUS certification at mtm plastics complements Borealis’ existing ISCC PLUS certifications for its recycling operations, including at Ecoplast in Austria and Renasci in Belgium. This achievement offers Borealis’ customers further confidence in the sustainability credentials of its circular materials.

We remind, Borealis announces that it has signed an agreement for the acquisition of Integra Plastics AD, a Bulgarian advanced mechanical recycling player. Closing of this transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.

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Finland's Neste said it will have a major turnaround at its Porvoo refinery for about nine weeks between April and June next year, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

"The major turnaround is an investment in securing safety, availability and competitiveness of the refinery," Neste said in a statement.

During the scheduled time, the Porvoo refinery will be shut for regulatory inspections, maintenance works and selected asset improvement initiatives, Neste said.

"The turnaround will contribute to Neste's ambition to make the Porvoo refinery the most sustainable refinery in Europe by 2030 and to reach carbon neutral production by 2035," said Sami Wasstrom, head of turnarounds at Neste Oil Products.

We remind, Neste has partnered with Coleman Oil Company, a leading provider of fuels, biofuels, lubricants, and related products, to enable cities and businesses to have easier access to Neste MY Renewable Diesel in the state of Washington in the U.S.

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A carbon capture project being developed in Baytown, Texas, by Covestro and the power company Calpine is one of three that could receive hundreds of millions of dollars from the US government, the Department of Energy (DOE) said on Thursday.

The DOE is offering up to $890m in funds for the three projects under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Before the government issues the money, DOE needs to start award negotiations with the projects.

The Covestro and Calpine project, called the Baytown Carbon Capture and Storage Project, will capture the carbon dioxide (CO2), generated from a natural gas combined cycle power plant, known as the Baytown Energy Center, according to the DOE.

Covestro will be the main consumer of the power producers by the plant. The project will use Shell's CANSOLV solvent to capture up to 2m metric tonnes/year of CO2, which will be shipped and sequestered in saline storage sites on the Gulf Coast.

The project is studying whether it can reuse wastewater for cooling, the DOE said. The government could contribute up to $270m.

We remind, Covestro is investing a mid to high double-digit million euro amount in the modernization of its production plant in Dormagen by 2025. The plant was commissioned in early 2015 and is considered one of the most advanced TDI production facilities in the world due to the use of the gas phase technology developed by Covestro. The work will include the installation of a modern reactor that will enable the reaction energy to be used for energy-efficient steam generation in the future.

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The Biden administration has initiated a formal evaluation of risks posed by vinyl chloride, the cancer-causing chemical that burned in a towering plume of toxic black smoke following a fiery train derailment earlier this year in eastern Ohio, said Cbsnews.

The Environmental Protection Agency said it will review risks posed by a handful of chemicals, including vinyl chloride, which is used to make a variety of plastic products, including pipes, wire and packaging materials. The chemical is found in polyvinyl chloride plastic, better known as PVC.

The EPA said it will study vinyl chloride to determine whether it poses an "unreasonable risk to human health or the environment," a process that would take at least three years.

Vinyl chloride is one of five chemicals the agency is reviewing, including four that are used to make plastics. Other chemicals set for review under the federal Toxic Substances Control Act include acetaldehyde, acrylonitrile, benzenamine, and a compound known as MBOCA.

We remind, Civil society organisations welcome the publication of the investigation report on PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and its additives by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). The findings clearly indicate environmental damage and harm to health from some substances added to PVC and the release of its microparticles. More than 60 environmental NGOs are calling on the European Commission to phase-out PVC by 2030. Therefore they are pushing for a restriction on the harmful plastic and its additives under the REACH regulation.

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