BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) has closed the previously announced transaction to divest its global paper hydrous kaolin (PHK) business to Imerys, a producer of mineral-based specialty solutions for industry, based in Paris, France. Under a tolling agreement of limited…
Air Liquide’s (Paris, France; www.airliquide.com) engineering and construction activity entity, Air Liquide Global E&C Solutions has announced the successful startup of a world-scale butadiene extraction unit at Evonik’s facility in Antwerp, Belgium, and further strengthens its leading market position in…
The American Chemistry Council’s (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) Global Chemical Production Regional Index (Global CPRI) ended the third quarter by rising 0.3% on a three-month-moving-average basis. The Global CPRI data are discussed in the ACC’s latest Weekly Chemistry and Economic…
DuPont (Wilmington, Del.; www.dupont.com) celebrated the opening of its cellulosic biofuel facility in Nevada, Iowa, with a ceremony including Iowa Gov. Terry Brandstad and many other dignitaries. This biorefinery is the world’s largest cellulosic ethanol plant, with the capacity to…
ExxonMobil Corp. (Irving, Tex.; www.exxonmobil.com) will expand the hydrocracker unit at its Rotterdam refinery to upgrade heavier byproducts into cleaner, higher-value finished products, including EHC Group II base stocks and ultra-low sulfur diesel, to meet growing global market demand. The…
Yara International ASA (Oslo, Norway; www.yara.com) has acquired 100% of the shares in Apache Fertilisers Pty. Ltd., which holds Apache's 49% ownership position in Yara Pilbara Holdings Pty. Ltd. (YPHL), for $391 million. YPHL owns 100% of the Yara Pilbara…
Analytik Jena AG (www.analytik-jena.de) has established a branch office on the premises of Endress+Hauser Group’s (Reinach, Switzerland; www.endress.com) Reinach site in Switzerland. “This step is part of our strategy to further expand our international sales structure and to establish our…
BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) is planning to start production of Palatinol DOTP (diethylhexyl terephthalate) in North America in 2017 by investing in dedicated production facilities in Pasadena, Tex. The project will help meet the growing demand for non-ortho-phthalate plasticizers…
Evonik Industries AG (Essen, Germany; www.evonik.com) has opened its expanded facilities in Ako, Japan, where the company will produce its Sipernat and Carplex lines of specialty silicas. The investment represents a roughly 50% increase in Evonik’s Japanese production capacity for…
Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com) today announced two big helium market wins. Air Products will supply to RasGas Company Ltd (RasGas), the helium licensor package equipment for the new Helium 3 plant to be located at the Barzan…