Ineos Expanding PAO Unit at LaPorte
Ineos Oligomers is expanding its plant for High Viscosity polyalphaolefins (PAO) at La Porte, Texas, in stages up to mid-2025.
News
Azelis Makes Another Move in India
Azelis has announced that it has agreed to buy a majority stake in Ashapura Aromas, a leading Indian distributor of flavor & fragrance ingredients.
Novartis Confirms 8,000 Global Jobs Will be Axed
Novartis has confirmed reports by Swiss daily newspaper Tages-Anzeiger that it plans to slash 8,000 jobs worldwide.
ExxonMobil and Shell Study China CCS Project
Energy and petrochemical giants ExxonMobil and Shell have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with CNOOC and the Guangdong Provincial Development & Reform Commission in China to evaluate the potential for a world-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) project.
Borealis Invests in Global Wire and Cable Assets
Borealis is investing about €200 million to upgrade and expand capacity for cross-linked PE (XLPE) and semiconductive compounds in Europe in order to meet future demand in wire and cable applications.
Novartis Pledges to Fight Tropical Diseases and Malaria
Swiss drugmaker Novartis has made a five-year financial commitment of $250 million to fight neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and malaria.
Solvay Progressing Fluorosurfactant Phase-out
Solvay is completely phasing out the use of fluorosurfactants across its global production platforms up to 2026. In its latest step, the Belgian chemical giant said it will be able to produce nearly 100% of its fluoropolymers without fluorosurfactants at its Spinetta Marengo, Italy, site by that date.
New Covid Shots Score Points against Omicron
Sanofi and GSK are touting their latecomer protein-based Covid-19 vaccine as a potential game changer in the fight against the Omicron variant.
Kemira Launches Growth Accelerator Unit
Finland’s Kemira has launched a new division, called its Growth Accelerator unit, to drive the company’s long-term growth for selected strategic initiatives.
Sharon McGuiness new ECHA Chief Executive
Sharon McGuinness has been appointed to a five-year term as the new executive director of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), the body that administrates the REACH chemicals legislation.
Merck Germany Doubles HPAPI Potential
The Life Science business segment of German pharmaceuticals, chemicals and life sciences group Merck has widened its US plant for high-potent active pharmaceutical ingredients (HPAPIs) at Verona, near Madison, Wisconsin to 6,500 m2.
AkzoNobel Hikes China Paints Capacity
Dutch paints and coatings group AkzoNobel has invested an undisclosed sum in a new production line in China for water-based texture paints.
IMCD Expands in China with Welex Buy
IMCD China, part of Netherlands-headquartered multinational chemicals distributor IMCD, has agreed to take over specialty distribution company Welex, boosting its footprint in China.
BASF to Build Battery Recycling Plant at Schwarzheide
German chemical giant BASF has announced it will build a commercial scale battery recycling black mass plant in at its Schwarzheide, Germany, site, strengthening the location’s activities in production and recycling of cathode active materials (CAM).
US Supreme Court Won’t Hear Bayer’s Roundup Petition
After months of anticipation, the US Supreme Court has deflated Bayer’s hopes that the court’s conservative majority would vote to hear its appeal to overturn a $25 million appeals court verdict in favor of Edwin Hardeman.
Clariant Restructures Business, Leadership
Clariant is restructuring its business and leadership to position itself for long-term sustainable growth and implement a cultural transformation.
Qatar Awards first North Field Contracts
The emirate of Qatar has begun signing agreements with US and European energy majors for the country’s planned $30 billion expansion of its North Field, which is believed to harbor the world’s largest natural gas reserves. TotalEnergies is taking the top slot.
Neste, Covestro and SK Geo Centric Partner on PU Feedstock
A collaboration between Neste, Covestro and SK Geo Centric aims to use renewable raw materials to produce MDI – a key feedstock for polyurethane production.
Azelis Takes Majority Share of ROCSA Colombia
Azelis has agreed to acquire a majority stake in ROCSA Colombia, a specialty chemical distributor serving the life sciences and industrial chemical markets in South America.
Bayer Wins Fourth Roundup Appeal as EPA Zooms in
Bayer has won its fourth consecutive appeal of a US court case previously decided in favor of a plaintiff who claimed that Monsanto’s glyphosate-based Roundup herbicide caused his non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Wacker has Ambitious Plans for Norwegian Site
With an eye to expanding production capacity for silicon metal, Germany’s Wacker Chemie has launched a feasibility study to carry out a capacity upgrade at its site in Holla, Norway.
Pfizer Invests in Valneva, Updates Lyme Vaccine Venture
Pfizer is to invest $95 million and take an equity share of 8.1% in in Valneva in order to further support development of a vaccine for Lyme disease.
Ineos Mulls Acetic acid Unit in US
Ineos Acetyls has launched a feasibility study to explore building a world scale plant for acetic acid and derivatives on the US Gulf coast.
Shell and Dow Start Demo E-Cracker Unit
Shell and Dow have started up an experimental unit to electrically heat steam cracker furnaces in the Netherlands.
Unilever and Genomatica Partner on Plant-based Ingredients
Consumer goods giant Unilever and biotech specialist Genomatica are to jointly invest $120 million in a new venture to commercialize plant-based alternatives to feedstocks such as palm oil and fossil fuels used in cleansers for home care, beauty and personal care products.
Expansion at SK Biotek API Plant to Cost $35 Miilion
South Korean CDMO SK Pharmteco (SKTP) said it will spend $35 million on the initial phase of a planned expansion at the Dublin, Ireland, API site the conglomerate acquired from Bristol Myers Squibb in 2017. Prior to that, SK had been a BMS supplier for around a decade.
BASF Shanshan Expanding Battery Materials Output
BASF Shanshan Battery Materials (BSBM), a 51:49 joint venture of the German chemical giant and China’s Hunan Shanshan Energy, is expanding its battery materials capacity in China’s Changsha, Hunan Province, and Shuizuishan, Ningxia Province, to meet the fast-growing local and global demands of the electric vehicle (EV) industry.
Perstorp Starts Switch to Sustainable Polyols
Swedish chemical producer Perstorp is making strides toward its sustainability goals following its mid-May announcement that it will be acquired by Malaysian petrochemicals giant Petronas Group (PCG) for €1.54 billion.
CF Fertilisers Restructures in UK, Closes Ince Plant
CF Fertilisers is restructuring its UK operations to position the business for long-term profitability and sustainability, enabling it to continue supplying fertilizer, carbon dioxide and other industrial products.
Supreme Court Quiet on Bayer’s Roundup Petition
Despite the expectations of many, given the broad coverage in media of all types – and the case’s mention on the docket for Jun. 13 – the US Supreme Court has remained silent on whether or not it will hear Bayer’s petition on packaging labels for Monsanto’s glyphosate-based Roundup herbicide.
Curia and Replicate Bioscience Link on sRNA
Research-oriented CDMO Curia, formerly known as AMRI, has agreed to cooperate with Replicate Bioscience, a company searching for ways to prevent drug resistance in cancer and to treat autoimmune and inflammatory disorders and other diseases using self-replicating RNA (srRNA).
New PAO Plant for CPChem in Belgium
Chevron Phillips Chemical (CPChem) is planning to build a new polyalphaolefins (PAO) plant in Beringen, Belgium, to meet growing demand. The “significant investment” will see the company’s PAO capacity in Belgium double to 120,000 t/y when it starts up in 2024.
Pfizer to Spend $120 Million on US Paxlovid Buildup
Pfizer will invest $120 million at its plant in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to support US production of its Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir) oral antiviral treatment for Covid-19. The company said the money will fund an expansion of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and registered starting materials (RSMs) used to produce the treatment and make it one of the world’s largest producers of APIs.
Oqema Boosts German Presence with ACC Beku Buy
Chemicals distributor Oqema has strengthened its market position in Germany with the acquisition of ACC Beku, a specialty chemicals distributors that manufactures and bottles hardeners, lacquers and other “everyday” products. ACC Bekku now operates as an independent subsidiary of Oqema under the name Oqemiqs.
Samsung Biologics in $81 Million Deal with Novartis
In the their first-ever collaboration, South Korea’s Samsung Biologics and Switzerland’s Novartis have inked an initial $81 million contract manufacturing and development deal, Samsung said in a regulatory filing.
