Westlake Chemical (Houston) has completed the acquisition of Nakan, a compounder of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), thermoplastic elastomers (TPE), and thermoplastic polyolefins (TPO) based in Reims, France, from OpenGate Capital (Los Angeles). Westlake announced the $265 million deal in September 2018.
Nakan brings Westlake eight production facilities located in China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain and Vietnam, a research facility in France, and an application laboratory in the United States.
OpenGate Capital purchased Nakan in 2015, through the acquisition of Ivy Group. Ivy Group, formerly known as Kem One Innovative Vinyls, was acquired through a French administration process that originated with a complex acquisition in 2014 of Kem One SAS, a fully integrated producer of PVC resins. Entrepreneur Alain de Krassny is now the sole shareholder in Kem One.
By Clay Boswell
Source: Chemical Week
The new Hydrogen Technologies business will be headed up by Ralph Calmes, who has been appointed Managing Director Hydrogen Technologies. Ralph, who previously led JM’s Platinum Group Metal Services business, will take up this role effective 1 October with both Eugene McKenna (Green Hydrogen) and Jo Godden (Fuel Cells) reporting directly to him. Ralph will report to Group Chief Executive Robert Macleod.
The Supervisory Board of Lenzing AG, the world’s leading producer of wood-based cellulosic fibers, has come to a mutual agreement with its longstanding Chief Executive Officer Stefan Doboczky to end his contract.
PlasticsEurope says that Europe’s plastics producers support the European Commission’s previously announced proposal for a mandatory EU recycled content target for plastics packaging, as defined in the Commission’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD). This target should be 30% for plastics packaging by 2030, PlasticsEurope says.
