Belgian specialty metals and materials group Umicore is interested in acquiring the catalyst unit of Germany's Süd-Chemie, Belgian business daily De Tijd said on Friday.

The newspaper said no deal had been reached and did not specify whether Umicore was looking to buy all Süd-Chemie or just the catalyst division, although the latter was the ultimate prize.

Umicore, which is one of the world's leading producers of automotive catalysts, said on Thursday, after releasing 2009 results, it would consider possible acquisitions, but did not give details. A spokesman said on Friday the company declined to comment on market speculation.

Munich-based Sü-Chemie has two divisions — adsorbents and catalysts — generating sales of about €1.2 billion. Its catalysts are used to produce hydrogen and in emission control. One Equity Partners LLC, which manages funds for JP Morgan Chase, owns 50.41% of the company.