13.09.2022 • News
Axens and Doris Collaborate on Carbon Capture
French engineering groups Axens and Doris have entered into a partnership to develop integrated carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) services.
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12.09.2022 • News
IMCD Buys Japan’s Kuni Chemical
IMCD has taken over Japanese specialty distribution company Kuni Chemical for an undisclosed sum. Kuni specializes in industrial applications that range from coatings and construction to automotive and packaging materials.
12.09.2022 • News
Hovione Expands Continuous Manufacturing Capabilities
Portuguese CDMO Hovione has expanded its continuous manufacturing capabilities with the start-up of a new facility at Loures. The company said it can now offer customers a commercial continuous tableting platform to support their key needs.
12.09.2022 • News
Germany’s Merck Expands French Facility
German science and technology company Merck has announced plans to invest more than €130 million at its site in Molsheim, France, to expand capacities for single-use assemblies, a key technology for producing Covid-19 vaccines and other therapies.
09.09.2022 • News
Solvay Invests in Sustainable Soda Ash Process
Solvay is launching a pilot project at its site in Dombasle, France, to validate a more sustainable process for producing soda ash.
09.09.2022 • News
Novo Nordisk Licenses Zealand’s Diabetes Treatment
Denmark’s Novo Nordisk has entered into a global license and development with compatriot biotech Zealand Pharma for the latter’s Zegalogue (dasiglucagon) injectable diabetes treatment.
09.09.2022 • News
Novartis to Shutter a Sandoz US Plant
In advance of the planned spinoff of generics subsidiary Sandoz into a standalone generics producer, Novartis has announced it is closing one of the subsidiary’s US plants.
08.09.2022 • News
Lonza and Touchlight Collaborate on DNA
Lonza has entered into a collaboration with Touchlight, a biotechnology company with patented technology for producing enzymatic DNA. The enzymatic manufacturing process is said to enable GMP production at “unprecented speed, scale and purity.”
08.09.2022 • News
BASF Commissions Solar Farm at Schwarzheide
BASF Schwarzheide, subsidiary of the German-multinational chemical group, together with local east German utility company Envia Mitteldeutsche Energie, has commissioned the region’s first solar farm. The project was announced by BASF last year as part of its plans to focus on renewable energy for its chemical production.
08.09.2022 • News
SK Closes Sale of NuCera Solutions to Chase
An affiliate of funds advised by SK Capital Partners has completed the sale of NuCera Solutions to international specialty chemicals company Chase Corp. for $250 million. The companies entered into the agreement on Jul. 18.
07.09.2022 • News
Topsoe Gives Green Light for Electrolyzer Plant
The board of Danish technology and catalyst company Haldor Topsoe has taken a final investment decision to build a solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) manufacturing plant in Herning.
07.09.2022 • News
Eurotecnica Wins More Melamine Contracts
Eurotecnica, the technology arm of energy firm and major methanol producer Proman, has announced the award of two large contracts for implementing high-pressure melamine plants.
07.09.2022 • News
US Drugmaker Merck & Co. to Add Jobs in Ireland
US drugmaker Merck & Co. plans to add 100 new jobs as part of an expansion project at its site in Carlow, Ireland, which opened in 2008 as the company’s first vaccines facility outside of the US and currently employs 530 people.
06.09.2022 • News
BASF, SABIC and Linde Start Building Demo E-cracker
BASF, SABIC and Linde have started building a plant to demonstrate using electricity instead of natural gas to heat steam cracker furnaces. The move follows the signing of a joint agreement in March 2021 to develop and demonstrate solutions for electrifying steam crackers.
06.09.2022 • News
Novartis Sued over its own Drug
Swiss drugmaker Novartis, already embroiled in a number of lawsuits against generics producers seeking to create copies of its blockbuster cardiac insufficiency treatment Entresto, is now itself being sued.
06.09.2022 • News
EMA’s CHMP Greenlights Omicron-1 Vaccines
The human medicines committee (CHMP) of EU drug regulator European Medicines Agency (EMA) has recommended approval of the updated Covid-19 vaccines of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, combining protection against the original Omicron variant as well as the wild type that emerged in China in early 2020.
05.09.2022 • News
BASF to Collaborate with Sulzer ChemTech
Germany’s BASF and Swiss-based technology firm Sulzer Chemtech have announced plans to collaborate on finding sustainable solutions for a number of industrial applications, in particular renewable fuels and chemically recycled plastics.
05.09.2022 • News
Technip Energies Buys DSM’s Biosuccinium Technology
French engineering and technology company Technip Energies has boosted its sustainable chemicals portfolio with the purchase of DSM’s biosuccinium technology. Financial terms were not disclosed.
05.09.2022 • News
Clariant Sells Quats to Global Amines
Clariant has agreed to sell its quats business to Singapore’s Global Amines for $113 million. Global Amines is a 50:50 joint venture between Clariant and Singapore-based agricultural and oleochemicals company Wilmar.
02.09.2022 • News
AstraZeneca CEO Goes “Off Message” on Covid Boosters
Days before the FDA approved the new bivalent Covid-19 vaccine boosters, Pascal Soriot, CEO of AstraZeneca, offered his own assessment of the need for such.
02.09.2022 • News
Novo Nordisk Boosts Blood Disorders with Forma Buy
Danish pharma Novo Nordisk has agreed to acquire US clinical-stage biopharma Forma Therapeutics in a deal worth $1.1 billion that will expand its blood disorders portfolio. Forma’s board of directors has unanimously approved the takeover, which is expected to close in the final quarter of 2022.
02.09.2022 • News
FDA Grants EUAs to Omicron-targeted Covid Shots
As had been widely expected, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Aug. 31 granted emergency use authorizations (EUAs) to the new Covid-19 shots developed by mRNA vaccine makers Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.
01.09.2022 • News
Ashland Expands Viatel Output in Ireland
US chemical producer Ashland is expanding its production and R&D site at the National Science Park in Mullingar, Ireland, which makes its Viatel-branded bioresorbable polymer. The upgrade, begun this summer, is expected to complete in 2024.
01.09.2022 • News
Advario and Fluxys Study Green Ammonia Import Terminal
Storage operator Advario, a wholly owned subsidiary of Oiltanking, has joined forces with Belgian gas transmission company Fluxys to study the feasibility of building an open-access green ammonia import terminal at the Port of Antwerp-Bruges.
01.09.2022 • News
Albemarle Retains Catalysts, Reorganizes Corporate Structure
Following a strategic review, US specialty chemicals company Albemarle is retaining its catalysts division, having decided that the best value is to hold the business as a separate, wholly owned subsidiary.
31.08.2022 • News
Germany’s LTS Lohmann Buys US CDMO Tapemark
Germany’s LTS Lohmann Therapie-Systeme has completed the acquisition of St. Paul, Minnesota-headquartered CDMO Tapemark, a US specialist in transdermal drug delivery systems, oral thin films and unit dose semi-solid drug and iontophoresis products.
31.08.2022 • News
Reliance Plans Oil-to-Chemicals Expansion
Indian multinational conglomerate Reliance Industries plans to invest 750 billion rupees – roughly $9.4 billion – to expand its oil-to-chemicals business over the next five years. Investments will be focused on polyesters, vinyls and carbon fiber.
31.08.2022 • News
Covestro Builds up Mechanical Reycling in Asia
German engineering plastics producer Covestro is buiilding its first dedicated line for mechanical recycling (MCR) of polycarbonates at its integrated site in Shanghai, China. The new 25,000 t/y facility, which will cost €27 million, is planned to start up in 2023.
30.08.2022 • News
Moderna Says Pfizer and BioNTech Infringed Vaccine Patent
BioNTech and Pfizer are facing another lawsuit claiming that their Comirnaty-branded Covid-19 vaccine infringes another company’s patent. The latest to sue is US rival Moderna, which claims the German-American duo copied the original mRNA technology it used for its first-generation shot Spikevax.
30.08.2022 • News
Evotec Enhances Rare Disease Focus with Central Glass Buy
German CDMO Evotec is to acquire compatriot company Central Glass Germany from Japanese owner Central Glass for a nominal price of €1. The transaction, which remains subject to the usual closing conditions, is expected to complete on Nov. 1.
30.08.2022 • News
Lummus Wins China Projects
US licensing group Lummus Technology has won two contracts from China’s Fujian Eversun New Material to supply its Catofin technology for a 900,000 t/y propane dehydrogenation (PDH) unit and its Novolen process for an 800,000 t/y PP plant in Fujian province.
29.08.2022 • News
Ineos Phenol to Buy Mitsui Phenols Singapore
Ineos Phenol is paying $330 million to acquire Mitsui Phenols Singapore. With the deal, expected to close in the first quarter of 2023, subject to regulatory approval, it will add 1 million tonnes of annual capacity to its production volume. The business had sales of $750 million in 2021 and 120 employees, all of whom will transfer to the new owner.
29.08.2022 • News
Investindustrial Sells PVC Compounder Benvic to ICIG
European private equity group Investindustrial — through subsidiary PVC Europe — has agreed a sale of PVC compounder Benvic to International Chemical Investors Group (ICIG). However, it expects to retain Benvic’s medical activities in Italy.
29.08.2022 • News
Novartis Definitely Plans to Spin off Sandoz
Novartis has finally confirmed definite plans to spin off its generic drugs arm Sandoz.
26.08.2022 • News
Vietnam Expands in Petchems and Plastics
Vietnam is on its way to becoming a major Asian player in petrochemicals and plastics. Up to now, the country has lagged regional peers such as China or Malaysia in bringing new production facilities on stream, but this is slowly changing.
