FMC Spins off Livent in IPO

Livent, the lithium business being separated from US chemicals group FMC in an initial public offering (ipo), began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Oct. 11.

Paul Graves, Livent’s CEO said the company was looking forward to the opportunities created by the stock exchange listing for continued investment in its long-term growth.

FMC first announced its intention to spin off its lithium business into a separate, publicly traded company in March 2017.

Following the ipo, FMC will remain the principal shareholder in Livent with approximately 85% of its outstanding common stock until it elects to distribute the remaining Livent shares to existing FMC shareholders through a spin-off or split-off, completing the full separation. This could happen within six months of the ipo.

Based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Livent employs about 700 people and operates seven manufacturing facilities in the US, the UK, Argentina, China and India.

Livent has previously stated its plans to raise lithium capacity from18,500 t/y in 2017 to about 55,000 t/y in 2025.

Lithium is a major component of lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles (EVs), a market that is forecast to surge in the coming years as governments introduce more stringent regulation to cut pollution and carmakers ramp up EV production.