Aster to acquire Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals

Aster Chemicals and Energy will acquire Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals through its affiliate Chandra Asri Capital, the companies said on Wednesday, as per Reuters.

They did not provide details on the value of the deal. Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals currently operates a 400,000 metric ton per year (tpy) polyethylene facility in Singapore's Jurong Island.

Polyethylene is a type of plastic resin used in the packaging, construction and medical industries.

"This acquisition represents a key achievement for Aster, supporting our strategic goals with new capabilities and strengthening our offerings to customers," the CEO of Singapore-based Aster Chemicals and Energy, Erwin Ciputra, said.

The approximately 150 employees of Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals are expected to have the opportunity to join Aster, Chevron Phillips Chemical said in its statement. The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions.

Last month, Aster Chemicals and Energy, a joint venture between Chandra Asri and Glencore, opens new tab, completed its purchase of Shell's Singapore refinery and refining assets.

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Synthomer PLC said it has agreed to divest its inorganic chemistry business, William Blythe Ltd., to its management team and the private equity firm H2 Equity Partners, for GBP30 million,as per Chemweek.

The transaction is conditional on certain customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed at the end of May 2025, the company said. Net proceeds will be used to reduce Synthomer’s net debt, it said.

William Blythe generated sales of ?54 million and an adjusted EBITDA of GBP4 million in 2024, the company said. The business has a workforce of around 85 at manufacturing site at Accrington, Lancashire, UK, it said.

William Blythe is part of Synthomer’s health and protection and performance materials division. The business was designated as non-core to the group as part of the strategic review announced in October 2022.

“The business has limited synergies with the rest of the group and its divestment will further reduce the complexity of our site portfolio and enhance our focus on higher value, higher growth specialty chemicals markets where we have strong and sustainable leadership positions,” said Michael Willome, CEO of Synthomer.

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BASF SE said its intermediates division is converting its entire European amines portfolio to renewable electricity. The transition starts in May and will apply to all amines produced at the company’s production sites at Ludwigshafen, Germany, and Antwerp, Belgium, the company said.

BASF’s intermediates division is one of the world’s largest amines producers, the company said, adding that the conversion to renewable electricity of the European production will result in the annual reduction of about 188,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalents as of 2025 compared with 2020.

This corresponds to an average product carbon footprint (PCF) reduction of about 8% across the entire amines portfolio, BASF said. This is an important milestone in the intermediates division’s efforts to contribute to BASF’s sustainability goal to cut Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 25% by 2030 versus 2018, it said.

In addition, the PCF reduction will support customers’ Scope 3 targets, the company said. “The switch to the new standard portfolio using renewable electricity will be seamless, without requiring product recertification or changes to the order process,” it added.

BASF said the shift to renewable electricity for the entire European amines portfolio marks a further step within a broader initiative to incorporate more sustainable practices across its global intermediates portfolio in the years to come.

“The option of using low-emission steam and procuring of key raw materials with a reduced PCF, such as methanol or ammonia, are constantly being evaluated based on customer feedback,” the company said.

BASF supports this ambition through ongoing investment in new processes and technologies, such as heat pumps as well as by its renewable carbon unit, which is dedicated to optimizing renewable feedstock sourcing, it said.

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Celanese Corp. (Dallas, Texas) plans to divest its Micromax electronic inks and pastes business, the company said on May 5. Celanese expects the business to generate over $300 million in revenue this year, as per Chemweek.

“Our primary focus continues to be aggressively and prudently deleveraging our balance sheet, and this strategy includes regularly reviewing our assets,” said Scott Richardson, Celanese’s president and CEO.

Celanese is pursuing multiple divestiture opportunities targeting a total of about $1.0 billion over the next 2.5 years, according to Chuck Kyrish, senior vice president and CFO.

Celanese, which released its first quarter results on May 5, is holding its earnings call on May 6.

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Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. (CPChem; The Woodlands, Texas) has sold its affiliate Chevron Phillips Singapore Chemicals (CPSC) to Aster Chemicals and Energy Pte. Ltd. (Singapore) through its affiliate PT Chandra Asri Pacific Tbk (Jakarta), as per Chemweek.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions. Aster is a joint venture company between Chandra Asri and Glencore PLC (Baar, Switzerland).

CPSC operates a high-density polyethylene (HDPE) manufacturing facility on Jurong Island with an annual production capacity of 400,000 metric tons per year. CPSC is a JV between CPChem, EDB Investments Pte. Ltd. and Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd.

CPChem said its Asia headquarters, responsible for the sales and marketing of products throughout the region, will remain in Singapore.

Aster has a fully integrated refinery capacity of 237,000 b/d alongside a 1.1 million metric ton ethylene cracker on Bukom Island and downstream chemical assets on Jurong Island.

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