The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), expanded 1.0 percent in May, following a revised 0.8 percent increase in April and 0.1 percent increase in March. All data…
Lanxess AG (Cologne, Germany; www.lanxess.com) has expanded its capacities for light-colored sulfur carriers at its sites in Mannheim, Germany, and Kallo, near Antwerp, Belgium. For the Rhein Chemie Additives (ADD) business unit, this step strengthens its already strong position in…
Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. (B&W; Charlotte, N.C.; www.babcock.com) has signed a definitive agreement to acquire SPIG S.p.A. (SPIG; Arona, Italy; www.spig-int.com), a global provider of custom-engineered cooling systems and services, based on an enterprise value of €155 million, subject…
On May 19, 2016 SABIC (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; www.sabic.com) inaugurated a new research facility at the Brightlands Chemelot Campus in Geleen, the Netherlands. The official opening was done by the Governor of the Limburg Province Theo Bovens and Peter Borman,…
The Specialty Chemicals Market Volume Index, a tool created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) entered the second quarter of 2016 on a soft note, slipping 0.3 percent on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis in April.…
Technip (Paris, France; www.technip.com) and FMC Technologies, Inc. (Houston; www.fmctechnologies.com) announced that the companies will combine to create a global company, which will be called TechnipFMC, with an equity value of $13 billion based on pre-announcement share prices. The companies…
Sumitomo Chemical Co. (Tokyo; www.sumitomo-chem.co.jp) has decided to expand its production capacity for the feed additive methionine by adding a new production line in its Ehime Works in Niihama City, Ehime Prefecture, Japan, to meet the active demand in the…
Gevo, Inc. (Englewood, Colo.; www.gevo.com) has entered into an agreement with Clariant (Muttent, Switzerland; www.clariant.com) to develop catalysts to enable Gevo’s ETO technology. As previously disclosed, Gevo’s ETO technology, which uses ethanol as a feedstock, produces tailored mixes of propylene,…
A joint development program focused on bio-based PBS (polybutylene succinate) compounds for injection molding has been launched by Reverdia (www.reverdia.com), a joint venture (JV) between Royal DSM N.V. (Heerlen, the Netherlands; www.dsm.com) and starch-derivatives maker Roquette (Lestrem, France; www.roquette.com), and…
Polynt Group (Bergamo, Italy; www.polynt.it) and Reichhold Group (Durham, N.C.; www.reichhold.com) announced a definitive agreement to effect the combination of the two businesses. The business combination is expected to create a leading global, vertically-integrated manufacturer of resins for composites and…