The European Commission has approved Evonik’s acquisition of the silica business of J.M. Huber (Edison, New Jersey) subject to divestment of some of both companies’ activities related to precipitated silica. Evonik announced plans to acquire the business for $630 million in December 2016.
To secure approval, Evonik has agreed to divest its precipitated silica business for dental applications in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Huber will divest its precipitated silica business for defoamer applications in the European Economic Area (EEA); and will sell its hydrophobic precipitated silica business in the EEA.
The commission’s investigation found that the transaction raised competition concerns in certain markets, notably precipitated silica for toothpaste and for defoamer applications; and hydrophobic precipitated silica, which is used in products including defoamers, paints, coatings, and food and feed additives. The merged entity would have a relatively high combined share of these markets. In addition, there is a limited number of alternative suppliers in each of these market, the commission says. The commission concluded that the proposed merger, as modified by the planned divestitures, would no longer raise competition concerns.
Evonik has previously said it expects to close the deal in the second half of 2017.
By Michael Ravenscroft
Source: Chemical Week
INEOS Styrolution, the global leader in styrenics, has today announced the official opening of a new world-scale ABS[1] facility located in Ningbo, China, together with its joint venture partner SINOPEC. The facility has an annual nameplate capacity of 600,000 tonnes.
The merger of Röhm’s Acrylic Products business unit and SABIC’s Functional Forms business has resulted in the formation of Polyvantis. This new company will offer extruded products in the forms film, sheet, pipe and rod for markets that include building and construction, transportation and aviation, electrical and electronics, automotive and home and garden.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (Adnoc) is considering plans to acquire upstream oil and gas company Wintershall DEA, an affiliate of BASF SE, according to a Bloomberg report citing people with knowledge of the matter. A deal to acquire Wintershall DEA could be worth more than €10 billion, the report said. BASF and Adnoc declined to comment on the report.
