Solenis www.solenis.com and BASF www.basf.com have signed an agreement to combine paper manufacture and chemical specialities based on water, creating one single, global company. The combined company intends to operate under the Solenis trademark and will be in a position to offer economically advantageous solutions for customers in two specialised chemical sectors: paper technology and industrial water technology. The transaction is expected to be finalised towards the end of 2018, after regulatory approval. The financial terms have not been divulged.
“Together we have the unique opportunity to create a global chemical speciality company focused on the customer, with more to offer”, declares the President and CEO of Solenis John Panichella, who will manage the combined company with its headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, in USA. “I am pleased that our cultures are closely aligned and that our companies share a strong desire to create value for our customers. Together, as one team of experts, we shall continue to aim for excellence in terms of innovation, sustainability and safety”.
“In combination with Solenis’ service capacity, we shall create added value for our customers. They will benefit from our joint innovation activities, portfolios of complementary and avant guard products, and dedicated support of services and applications”, comments Anup Kothari, President of the Performance Chemicals division of BASF. For the cellulose and paper industry, the combined company’s product portfolio will cover the whole range of process and functional chemical products, as well as functionality of complete service. For high water intensity markets, the customers will benefit from Solenis’ service capacity and BASF’s vast platform of chemical products for water treatment.
The transaction includes BASF’s global division of paper and water chemical products and concerns about 1,300 employees globally. On conclusion of the transaction, and in compliance with local laws, the employees will transfer to Solenis.
The transaction includes paper and water assets of the BASF’s Performance Chemicals division, including the production sites in Bradford and Grimsby, in the United Kingdom, Suffolk, in Virginia (USA); Altamira, Mexico; Ankleshwar, India; and Kwinana, in Australia. BASF’s chemical water and paper factories in Ludwigshafen, in Germany, and in Nanjing, in China will not be transferred and will deliver raw materials based on supply agreements. BASF’s chemical activity for coating paper is not part of the planned transaction.
Solenis and BASF will continue to operate strictly as independent companies until the transaction is completed.