Ashland Global Holdings is selling the Ashland composite resins business to Swiss-based olefins and polyolefins giant Ineos for an undisclosed sum. The deal includes activities with annual turnover of $1.1 billion as well as a 100,000 t/y butane diol facility at Marl, Germany, which produces key intermediates for high performance polyesters and polyurethanes.

The transaction is due to close in the first half of next year, subject to regulatory approvals. The activities to be transferred employ 1,300 people at 20 sites in Europe, North and South America, Asia and Middle East.

Bill Wulfsohn, CEO of Dublin, Ohio-based Ashland is divesting the activities to pare down debt toward the goal of establishing itself “a premier specialty chemicals company with a more streamlined and focused product portfolio, improved margins and reduced earnings volatility.”

Ashland touts its composites business line as a global leader in unsaturated polyester resins, vinyl ester resins and gel coats. Along with a wide range of gelcoats, it also produces corrosion-resistant fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP), a high performance material used in challenging environments.