The US Senate has narrowly voted, 48 to 52, in favor of a Republican Party resolution to block president Joe Biden’s Covid-19 vaccine mandate for companies employing 100 people or more. Two conservative senators from Biden’s Democratic Party voted with the opposition.
Cabot has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with IFF Health and Biosciences to develop and commercialize sustainable reinforcing additives for rubber products. Under the agreement, the companies will exclusively work together to accelerate innovative technologies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the amount of renewable bio-based content
Fertilizer giant Yara has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sumitomo Chemical under which the Norwegian group will examine the supply of clean ammonia to the Japanese firm’s production plants. Sumitomo would use the clean ammonia for producing petrochemicals and plastics and/or distributing energy out of its plants in Japan.
Abu-Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co. has acquired a 1.9% stake in Sibur, Russia’s largest integrated petrochemicals producer. Terms were agreed prior to Sibur’s merger with compatriot petrochemical producer TAIF, which Mubadala said is “bound to further the company’s position in the polyolefins and rubbers markets, contribute to the pipeline of growth capex projects and unlock additional operational synergies.”
Belgian chemicals and recycling company Umicore is teaming up with German carmaker Volkswagen in a joint venture to produce cathode materials for VW’s battery cell production. The companies said the new firm would be the first of its kind in the European automotive market and would support the ambitious objectives of the EU’s Green Deal.
Germany’s Merck is allocating an additional €600 million to its strategic corporate venture capital arm M Ventures. The chemicals, pharmaceuticals and life sciences group said the funds will be deployed over the next five years.
Italian contractor Tecnimont has signed three contracts with Borouge for engineering, procurement construction (EPC) services on the polyolefins expansion in Ruwais, Abu Dhabi. The value of the turnkey contracts, which Tecnimont said were awarded on the basis of a competitive bidding process, totals about $3.5 billion.
ExxonMobil Chemical has acquired Materia, a US-based company that has pioneered technology for manufacturing a new class of materials that can be used in various applications, including wind turbine blades, electric vehicle parts, sustainable construction, and anticorrosive coatings. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
As the most recently documented Covid-19 variant, Omicron, continues to rapidly circle the globe – it has now been found in 57 countries and 21 US states, according to the US Centers for Disease Control – Pfizer and BioNTech have become the first vaccine manufacturers to claim that their booster shot can deal with it.
Univar Solutions has acquired Brazil’s Sweetmix Distribuidora de Materias Primas Industrais for an undisclosed sum. Based in Sao Paulo, Sweetmix offers a range of food mixtures, sweeteners and other ingredients, as well as specialty additives for coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers (CASE), rubbers and plastics.
French multinational group Saint-Gobain has agreed to acquire GCP Applied Technologies for about $2.3 billion, gaining a world-leading presence in the expanding construction chemicals sector. Both boards of directors have unanimously approved the deal, which is expected to close by the end of 2022.
Plant ingredients supplier Roquette, which is also is a leading player in naturally-derived pharmaceutical excipients, has announced plans for a new innovation center at its US site in Spring House, Pennsylvania. The complex due to open in summer 2022 will house Roquette Pharmaceutical Solutions’ headquarters and serve as a global hub for R&D.
In his interview with CHEManager, Jeff Zhu, chairman of the Chinese Association of International Chemical Manufacturers (AICM), talks about the industry’s role in helping achieve China’s carbon-neutrality goal.
During its Dec. 10, session, the US Supreme Court has said it will review Bayer’s petition to have the country’s highest court decide whether a federal district court’s judgment in favor of Edwin Hardeman should be allowed to stand.
Japan’s Mitsubishi Chemical has announced plans to carve out by 2023 and finally exit its petrochemical and coal chemicals businesses. The move is part of its latest management policy called Forging the Future, which covers the period through to the end of fiscal 2025.
IMCD China, part of Netherlands-headquartered globally active specialty chemicals distributor IMCD, has agreed to acquire all of Chinese personal care company Syntec to bolster its position in the personal care and cosmetics sector. Closing of the transaction, for which financial terms were not revealed, is planned to take place within the next five weeks.
Swiss CDMO Lonza has agreed a five-year collaboration on the development and manufacturing of biologics and small molecules with European venture capital firm Bioqube Ventures.
US specialty chemicals and performance materials manufacturer Cabot Corp. has agreed to sell its purification solutions business, Norit Activated Carbon, to One Equity Partners for $111 million. The deal is expected to close by the end of quarter one 2022, subject to the usual conditions.
Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies is investing £400 million to expand its Teesside site in northeast England, where it makes the active ingredient for the Novavax Covid-19 vaccine. The Japanese company said the expanded facilities are set to open in 2023 or early 2024, creating as many as 350 “highly skilled jobs” in contract manufacturing.
Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the chemical industry and other industries have achieved rapid growth in the past years and are contributing to China’s economic development.
In the past 20 years, the chemical industry in China has grown rapidly and today accounts for close to 40% of worldwide chemical-industry revenue. Understanding environment-related regulatory and policy shifts now in full swing in China is critical to ensuring compliance and reducing business interruption risks for chemical companies either operating in or sourcing from China.
South Africa’s Competition Commission has blocked Sasol’s proposed sale of its sodium cyanide business to Czech-based firm Draslovka on pricing concerns. Sasol said the decision to block the deal was unexpected, particularly given that the Commission had fully evaluated the pricing issue earlier in the review process.
With a vote of 13 to 10, the Antimicrobial Drugs Advisory Committee, an advisory panel to the US Food and Drug Administration, narrowly decided to to recommend emergency use authorization (EUA) of the Covid-19 antiviral pill molnupiravir (brand name Lagevrio) developed by US drugmaker by Merck &Co together with compatriot Ridgeback Biotherapeutics.
Globally active life science ingredients distributor Barentz International is acquiring an undisclosed majority stake in the distribution activities of India’s Gangwal Chemicals. The Mumbai-based company is a high-end distributor and specialty solutions provider that focuses on pharmaceuticals with a strong presence in the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, personal care and cosmetics ingredients segments. Additionally, it has a strong position in high-end and niche specialty excipients.
Azelis has acquired Neupert Specialities, an Austrian distributor specializing in food and health raw materials and ingredients in its local market, as well as in Germany and Switzerland. The deal strengthens the Belgium-based distributor’s presence in the growing Austrian food and health segment and in the region’s broader life sciences market, also adding cross-selling opportunities.
Ineos Styrolution has confirmed plans to invest in a pilot plant in the UK for the chemical recycling of polystyrene (PS). The site in Swindon is being developed in collaboration with Recycling Technologies, a UK-based company with proprietary, patented depolymerization technology, and US plastics and rubber producer Trinseo.
Britain’s largest drugmaker, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has landed a major coup, luring Pfizer’s vaccines R&D chief away, as it tries to regain its position in the top tier of the vaccine league and build up its presence in the mRNA field. On Dec. 3, Philip Dormitzer, who had served as the US pharma giant’s chief scientific officer for RNA and viral vaccines since 2015, will say goodbye to New York and, figuratively, at least, hello to London.
US food and nutrition group ADM has acquired Sojaprotein, a Serbian-based provider of non-GMO soy ingredients, for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition expands ADM’s global alternative protein capabilities and its ability to meet growing demand for plant-based foods and beverages.
In response to new data published by rival Merck that downgrade earlier efficacy forecasts for its for Covid-19 oral antiviral treatment, Pfizer has announced will increase production capacity of its own antiviral pill Paxlovid as it waits for an emergency use authorization (EUA) from the FDA.
World’s largest chemical producer BASF is creating a new company dedicated to renewable energy. The new firm, BASF Renewable Energy, which is to be based at the group’s Ludwigshafen, Germany headquarters, will steer internal projects as well as collaboration with external partners.
Danish companies Novozymes and Novo Nordisk Pharmatech are teaming up to develop technical enzymes to support biopharma processing. The companies aim to develop high-quality enzymatic processing aids for the regenerative medicines market, focusing on stem cell and gene therapies.
The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess Greiner’s proposed acquisition of Recticel over concerns that the combined entity would reduce competition in the technical foams market. The polyester- or polyether-based flexible foams are used in a wide variety of applications in diverse industries, including the automotive, construction, household and clothing industries.
British energy giant BP has decided to build a large-scale plant to produce green hydrogen from renewable feedstocks, wind, water and solar energy at its Teesside complex in northeast England. The plans are in line with the London-based group’s drive to move away from fossil fuels, in company with other global petrochemical powerhouses.
Days before news of the omicron-dubbed latest coronavirus mutant emerged, the administration of US president Joe Biden called on the courts to remove a stay on the implementation of its plans to mandate Covid-19 vaccines mandatory for employees of all companies employing more than 100 people by Jan. 4, 2022 or require them to undergo weekly testing.
Lummus Technology’s Green Circle subsidiary has finalized a Letter of Intent with Phigenesis, which will use its New Hope Plastics Pyrolysis technology in a new chemical recycling facility in Europe. The facility, which will have a capacity of 150,000 t/y, marks the first license of the process in Europe. The companies did not disclose where the plant will be built.
