IFF completes nitrocellulose divestiture

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF) said that it has completed the sale of its nitrocellulose business to Czecholovak Group (Prague), an industrial products holding company. Terms of the transaction, including purchase price, were not disclosed, as per Chemweek.

The business makes nitrocellulose for industrial purposes, mostly in the coatings and printing inks end markets. It was a part of IFF’s pharma solutions unit, most of which was sold to Roquette for $2.85 billion in a deal that closed May 1.

The deal is part of IFF’s deleveraging strategy, according to CEO Erik Fyrwald. The broader pharma solutions divestiture, which generated about $2.3 billion in proceeds, according to S&P Global Ratings, was also a part of that strategy. On May 2, IFF launched a series of tender offers to repurchase up to $1.8 billion in outstanding bonds funded by the pharma solutions divestiture proceeds, which will reduce the company’s adjusted leverage ratio to around 3.3 times debt to EBITDA, S&P Global Ratings said.

”The pharma solutions divestiture and associated debt repayment conclude the bulk of IFF’s large-scale divestitures and restore its leverage to management’s long-term target,” S&P Global Ratings added.

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Despite higher crude oil values, propylene prices quoted lower in Asia on Thursday, as per Polymerupdate.

An industry source in Asia on condition of anonymity informed a Polymerupdate team member, "Prices were assessed lower on the back of a bearish purchase pulse in the Asian markets.'

On Thursday, FOB Korea propylene prices were assessed at the USD 765-775/mt levels, down USD (-10/mt) from Wednesday.

Meanwhile, CFR China propylene prices on Thursday were assessed at the USD 795-805/mt levels, a day on day drop of USD (-5/mt).

In plant news, Jinneng Science and Technology has restarted its No. 2 Polypropylene (PP) unit on May 8, 2025 following a turnaround. The unit was shut for maintenance on March 21, 2025. Located in Qingdao, China, the No. 2 unit has a production capacity of 450,000 mt/year.

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The European chemical industry’s output is forecast to grow 0.5% in 2025, compared with 2.5% in 2024, mainly due to the “highly uncertain” economic environment European chemical companies are operating in, according to the most recent Chemical Monthly Report by the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic), as per Chemweek.

In the first two months of the year, European chemical output decreased slightly, 0.3% year over year, and remained 9.1% below the pre-crisis levels of 2014 to 2019, Cefic said.

Belgium’s chemical output grew at the highest rate, at 9.1%, while the Netherlands and France posted declines of 6.1% and 5.5%, respectively, Cefic said. Germany and Italy posted a modest increase of less than 0.5%, it said.

“As major supplier of products and technologies to key manufacturing sectors, the European chemical industry needs a strong domestic demand to achieve significant growth. Unfortunately, no strong positive changes have been observed so far and business expectations for most downstream users are still not encouraging,” Cefic said.

European chemical prices were 1.1% higher compared with the first two months of 2024, while sales in value increased by less than 1%, Cefic said. Meanwhile, capacity utilization decreased to 74% in the first quarter of 2025, from 74.4% in the fourth quarter of 2024, and below a long-term average of 81.4%, Cefic added.

The recovery that started in 2023 was interrupted in the second half of 2024 and this trend continues in 2025, Cefic noted. “This reflects the high level of uncertainty surrounding the European business community. Given the lack in demand growth, the European chemical industry production volumes have still not recovered,” it said.

The ongoing low demand and high energy costs continue to weigh on European chemical sales, Cefic said.

Europe’s chemical exports increased by 1.8% in the first two months of 2025 in comparison with the same period in 2024, while chemical imports increased by 10.2%, it said. As a result, Europe’s chemicals trade surplus amounted to €6.7 billion in the first two months of 2025, down by around 25% year over year or €2.2 billion, Cefic said.

Imports continue to grow more steeply than domestic production, meaning that the EU is losing ground on its home market to non-EU countries, Cefic noted. Imports of chemicals from China reached €33.1 billion in 2024, followed by the US and the UK with €30 billion and €20.1 billion, respectively.

“European reliance on China’s exports to the [EU] chemicals market has increased more than 4.7 times in twenty years, rising from less than 1% in 2004 to 5.6% in 2024. The [EU] chemicals dependency on US’ exports has increased more than 1.4 times in the same period, rising from less than 3.7% in 2004 to 5.1% in 2024,” Cefic said.

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Tata Chemicals Ltd. (Mumbai) reported a 0.9% year-over-year rise in revenue to 35 billion Indian rupees ($415 million) for the fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31, as per Chemweek.

Lower prices weakened the company’s revenue. Its net loss reduced to 560 million rupees, from a net loss of 8.5 billion rupees in the previous-year quarter.

Tata Chemicals said market conditions remain challenging even as India continues to grow while China, the US and Western Europe are witnessing slight declines due to reduced demand for flat and container glass.

According to the company, demand-supply balance continues to be soft, coupled with uncertainties in soda ash trade driven by tariff changes.

Sales volumes for soda ash rose by 1% year over year to 902,000 metric tons in the fiscal fourth quarter. The company also recorded a flat year-over-year growth in sales volume for sodium bicarbonate to 57,000 metric tons per year.

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Marubeni Corp. and ExxonMobil Corp. have signed a long-term offtake agreement for approximately 250,000 metric tons per year of low-carbon ammonia from ExxonMobil’s facility at Baytown, Texas, which is expected to produce carbon-free hydrogen with approximately 98% of CO2 removed and low-carbon ammonia, as per Chemweek.

Marubeni will supply the ammonia mainly to Kobe Power Plant, a fully owned subsidiary of Kobe Steel, Ltd. Marubeni has also agreed to acquire an equity stake in ExxonMobil’s low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia facility. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

ExxonMobil said its facility is expected to be the world’s largest of its kind upon startup, capable of producing up to 1 billion cubic feet daily of low-carbon hydrogen and more than 1 million metric tons per year of low-carbon ammonia. Contingent on ongoing supportive government policy and necessary regulatory permits, a final investment decision is expected in 2025, it added.

“We hope to continue to actively cooperate with ExxonMobil, with a view of utilizing this experience and relationship we have built to decarbonize our power projects in Japan and Southeast Asia in the near future,” said Yoshiaki Yokota, senior managing executive officer, member of Corporate Management Committee, Supervisor of Energy & Chemicals Div. and Power & Infrastructure Services Div., Marubeni.

By Japan’s fiscal year 2030, Kobe Power Plant aims to co-fire low-carbon ammonia with existing fuel, reducing CO2 emissions. Through this supply chain, Marubeni aims to assist the decarbonization of not only Japan’s power sector but also its hard-to-abate sectors, such as the steel manufacturing industry, chemical industry, transportation industry and others, said Marubeni.

Another Japanese firm, Mitsubishi Corp., agreed last September with ExxonMobil to consider participating in the project, aiming to increase supply from the project to Japan.

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