Nouryon to acquire Sasol’s metal alkyls business

Nouryon (Amsterdam, the Netherlands; www.nouryon.com) has entered into an agreement to acquire the merchant triethyl aluminum (TEAL) business of Sasol, including its specialty fleet of returnable cylinders. TEAL is a metal alkyl essential in the production of high-volume plastics including polypropylene and polyethylene.

The acquisition is the latest in a series of moves Nouryon has made to significantly increase its footprint in the metal alkyls market, following an expansion of production capacity at its Rotterdam site and the acquisition of metal alkyls producer Zhejiang Friend in China.

“Our ambition is to strengthen our leadership position in catalysts to the global polymer industry and this acquisition allows us to take the next step in that journey,” said Johan Landfors, President of Technology Solutions at Nouryon. “The addition of this business will enable us to better serve our existing and new polymer customers.”

The transaction is expected to be finalized during the second quarter, after which Nouryon will gradually move production to its site in Rotterdam.

“We are very excited to take this next step in our growth strategy,” said Landfors. “We will continue to focus on building this part of our business and expect that we will make more bolt-on additions to our business in the future.”