The Covid-19 vaccine partnership of Germany’s BioNTech and US drugs giant Pfizer inked its third supply pact in a week on Jul. 31. This deal, with the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW), follows separate agreements with the US and UK signed in the two preceding days.
French storage operator Rubis Terminal is to take over leading Spanish bulk liquid storage firm Tepsa in what it describes as a “transformational and strategic acquisition” that will increase its business by about 30%. The transaction is subject to approval from Spanish regulatory authorities.
After declaring in May that it would set up a global healthcare business, petrochemicals giant Ineos launched Ineos Hygienics on Jul. 30. The move was triggered by the outbreak of Covid-19 and the subsequent pandemic, which led demand for sanitizers to soar. Ineos responded by rapidly building six hand sanitizer plants in the UK, USA, Germany and France.
Lagging behind other big names of late in announcing Covid-19 vaccine supply deals, French and British drugmakers Sanofi and GlaxoSmithkline together nailed down agreements with the US and UK at the end of last week. The companies have hinted that a deal with the EU could be reached shortly.
Wacker Biotech, CDMO subsidiary of the Munich-based chemical group, is investing a mid-double-digit-million euro sum in its production facilities for biologics, LMPs (live microbial products) and vaccines at the Amsterdam site it acquired two years ago.
Former photography giant Eastman Kodak is moving into the manufacture of pharmaceutical ingredients, supported by a $765 million government loan awarded by the administration of US president Donald Trump under the Defense Production Act (DPA).
In a study carried out by an independent laboratory, the Rely On Virkon broad-spectrum surface disinfectant produced by Lanxess was shown to inactivate the SARS-CoV-2 virus, also known as Covid-19, rapidly, the German specialty chemicals company reports.
Linde has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Beijing Green Hydrogen Technology Development, a subsidiary of China Power International Development, to jointly promote the application and development of green hydrogen in China.
Clariant has signed a licensing deal for its sunliquid cellulosic ethanol technology with Bulgaria’s Eta Bio. The Swiss specialty chemicals group said the agreement, the fourth for sunliquid, represents another significant step toward the technology’s commercialization and also gives it a foothold in the agricultural sector.
The European Commission has signed a €63 million contract with Gilead Sciences to deliver batches of Veklury, Gilead’s name for the antiviral remdesivir, to the EU’s 27 member states as well as the UK, starting in early August.
US investment firm SK Capital Partners has agreed to acquire the specialty polymers business of energy technology group Baker Hughes. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of this year.
European officials recently began talking to companies developing Covid-19 vaccines about supplying the EU’s 27 member states, in hope that none would fall behind bigger markets such as the US, which began making exclusive deals early on. Now Reuters suggests the talks may have hit a snag.
The administration of US president Donald Trump canceled a planned meeting with pharmaceutical industry representatives in Washington on Jul. 28 after none said they planned to attend. The meeting had been called to discuss drug prices after the president announced four executive orders on Jul. 24.
TechnipFMC has announced the first commercial application of its Hummingbird sustainable ethanol-to-ethylene technology, following a licensing deal with LanzaTech. The engineering contractor originally acquired the process from BP Chemicals in June 2016.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has signed a joint venture agreement with diversified holding company ADQ to create a new chemicals investment platform for funding and developing industrial projects at the proposed Ruwais Derivatives Park.
Through an acquisition dating back 14 years, BASF is embroiled in the same type of litigation trap as compatriot Bayer currently faces. The Ludwigshafen group’s US catalyst subsidiary formerly known as Engelhard, in conjunction with the New Jersey company’s former law firm, has just reached an out-of-court settlement of lawsuits alleging its talc was contaminated with asbestos.
Swiss-headquartered multinational private investor Partners Group has agreed to buy a majority stake in Portuguese crop protection company Rovensa from rival investment group Bridgepoint for about €1 billion.
US biotechs Catalent and Humanigen are extending their standing collaboration on lenzilumab, Humanigen’s proprietary anti-human granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GCM-CSF) monoclonal antibody, with a new supply agreement covering Phase 3 clinical studies.
French chemical producer Arkema is planning to acquire high-performance thermobonding adhesive powders manufacturer Fixatti. The move is aimed at strengthening subsidiary Bostik’s global offering of high value-added technologies in hotmelt adhesive solutions for niche applications in the construction, technical coating, battery, automotive and textile printing industries.
Polynt-Reichhold has announced plans to build a 50,000 t/y maleic anhydride plant at its site in Morris, Illinois, USA. The new facility will support its internal supply of maleic anhydride for US production of composites and other maleic derivative, which it already makes in Europe and Asia.
Roche has announced two separate collaborations, one for an investigational cancer treatment and the other for the discovery of small molecule drugs for treating immune-mediated and neurological diseases.
US chemicals and plastics producer Dow plans to cut its workforce by 6% in response to the coronavirus crisis, CEO Jim Fitterling said on July 23 while presenting financial results for Q2 2020. The plans, he said, reflect management’s expectations of an uneven recovery from the ongoing pandemic.
Celanese has agreed to sell its 45% stake in the Polyplastics joint venture to partner Daicel for $1.575 billion. The deal, which is set to close later in 2020, will give Daicel full control of Polyplastics, which has been run by both companies for more than 50 years.
The world’s governments are signing vaccine supply pacts fast and furiously now, as the world continues to hope an effective prevention against Covid-19 will be found soon. Days after signing on with the UK government, German biotech BioNTech – working with American drugs giant Pfizer – has inked a deal with the US and is reportedly also talking to the EU.
In a more than four-day marathon session, marked in part by acrimonious discussions, EU leaders passed both the planned €750 million coronavirus recovery package and a new €1.1 trillion seven-year budget in the early morning hours of July 21.
Solenis has closed on another deal that boosts its offering to water-intensive industries. Effective Jul. 14, the US specialty chemicals producer completed its acquisition of Mexico's Poliquimicos for an undisclosed sum.
Engineering and construction group KBR has won contracts on two separate projects in China and India. The first will see it supply its proprietary catalyst for Shenghong Refining Petrochemical’s proposed vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) project in Lianyungang, China. The plant will have a capacity of 300,000 t/y – an on-stream date was not revealed.
In the ongoing litigation over whether Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide causes cancer, Bayer has suffered another setback, losing its appeal of the first of three US jury verdicts against it – even though the California Court of Appeals in San Francisco further slashed the 2018 damage award to $20.4 million.
BASF and Thyssenkrupp have signed a joint development agreement to expand their cooperation on the Thyssenkrupp’s Steam Active Reforming (STAR process). The engineering group’s proprietary dehydrogenation process is used to produce propylene from propane feedstocks or iso-butylene from iso-butane feedstocks, using an exceptionally stable catalyst.
DSM has entered into a joint venture with French agro-industrial group Avril to produce canola (rapeseed) proteins to meet growing global demand. The Dutch group will hold 75% of the new company, which is called Olatein, with Avril taking the remaining 25%.
The UK has signed an agreement to secure 90 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines developed by Germany’s BioNTech and France’s Valneva. The deals, for which financial terms were not disclosed, foresee taking 30 million doses from the German and 60 million from the French company.
Ulf Berghult has been appointed as Perstorp’s new CFO as of mid-February. He joins the group from Trelleborg, where he held the position as CFO since 2012.
Azelis has agreed to buy Orokia Israel for an undisclosed sum. The purchase will give the Belgian distributor entry to the “highly attractive” Israeli specialty chemicals market. Part of global investment group EQT, Azelis said the takeover of Orokia is consistent with its strategy of complementing organic growth with strategic acquisitions.
Saudi Aramco said it will reorganize its downstream business by the end of the year to support and enhance integration across the hydrocarbon value chain and better position the group to drive financial performance, value creation and global growth.
Ineos has launched a €3.6 billion leveraged loan – split between euros and US dollars – to refinance existing debt and reduce its term loan margins. Barclays, Citi and JP Morgan are global coordinators, alongside joint book runners BMO, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, ING and Lloyds.
