Lanxess has sold its 55% stake in the hydrazine hydrate joint venture Lanxess Yaxing (Weifang) Chemicals Company to its Chinese partner Weifang Yaxing Group. The joint venture was founded in September 2004 and is based in the Weifang Industry Park in Shandong province, China. Both parties have agreed not to disclose financial details. Lanxess will continue to produce hydrazine hydrate at its Leverkusen plant in Germany and said it is committed to providing a regular and long-term supply to its customers worldwide. Weifang Yaxing Group will continue to operate the assets after Lanxess' exit. In addition, Lanxess Corporation has sold the infrastructure and supporting services at its site in Bushy Park, South Carolina, U.S., to the investment company Cooper River Partners for €10 million.
The company's Rubber Chemicals business unit will continue to manufacture at the site and has reached a long-term lease and service agreement with Cooper River. The company also recently announced its Functional Chemicals business unit will transfer its colorants production from Lerma, Mexico, to its existing facility in Leverkusen, Germany, in the coming months. Lanxess also sold its remaining shareholding in the acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) joint venture to its partner Ineos in September, thus completely exiting the ABS business in 2009 as planned.
These measures run parallel to the company's "Challenge09-12" program that was implemented to help mitigate the effects of the crisis. Lanxess said it expects to cut costs worldwide by about €360 million by 2012.
Lanxess CEO Axel Heitmann said in an interview with the weekly newspaper Wirtschaftswoche that the company expects a good performance in 2010 and plans to expand capacities in Germany.
"I am optimistic for 2010. Demand for chemical industry products and capacity utilitzation will be improved compared with the previous year," Heitmann said in the interview. Investments and spending on research and development would be increased and new jobs created in Germany, he said. Heitmann said that Asia was a special focus area where new capacities would be created to meet rising demand for synthetic rubber.
He also did not rule out possible acquisitions, saying Lanxess was keen to exploit opportunities arising from consolidation in the chemicals industry.