Perstorp to Divest BioProducts

Swedish specialty chemicals producer Perstorp plans to sell its Perstorp BioProducts arm, a major producer of biodiesel and glycerine in Scandinavia, to a Swedish investor together with a member of the subsidiary’s management team.

Neither the identity of the new owners, financial terms of the transaction nor a closing date were revealed.

The sale includes the production site in Fredrikstad, Norway, but not the site at Stenungsund, Sweden, which will remain with Perstorp. For a limited time, the former parent will be a minority owner of the new company to be known as Adesso BioProducts. All 20 staff, based mostly in Fredrikstad, will be retained.

A tolling agreement, under which Perstorp will continue to produce biodiesel at Stenungsund for Adesso BioProducts, is part of the deal. If Adesso, longer term, decides to relocate production, Perstorp said it could repurpose the site to make other specialty chemical products.

Jan Secher, CEO of Perstorp, said the bioproducts manufacturer is one of the leading suppliers of biofuels in Scandinavia, and he sees “great potential” for the business under new ownership. For Perstorp, he said the sale is in line with its strategy to focus on high growth areas.

Adesso BioProducts’ CEO Lars Lind said that, due to the rapidly increasing focus on the decarbonization of the transportation sector, demand for biofuels and bio-based fuel components, the spinoff will see “continued strong growth” and the potential to expand. Along with developing the existing biofuel portfolio, he said management sees interesting opportunities in biocomponents suitable for advanced biofuels, carbon free aviation and bio-based chemicals.