Lanxess AG recently announced that it signed an agreement on Aug. 8 to sell its 50 percent stake in Arlanxeo, a manufacturer of synthetic rubber, to state-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co. The German-based specialty chemicals manufacturer first established Arlanxeo in 2016 as a 50–50 joint venture with the Saudi firm, which is also known as Saudi Aramco. The sale is...
Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd.’s (TYO:4005) business for ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) performed well in fiscal 2017, operating at full capacity and selling all products that were produced. But with supply and demand remaining at a tight balance, the company has been unable to keep up with increasing demand, and expects this trend in demand to continue for fiscal 2018....
Hideo Tsuji, president and CEO of Lanxess KK, held a press conference on April 17 to discuss the company’s plans and activities for fiscal 2018. Speaking at the event, Tsuji said that his company – which is the Japanese arm of German-based specialty chemicals manufacturer Lanxess AG – will provide lightweighting solutions for next-generation vehicles. This will include efforts in...
Chloroprene rubber (CR) is continuing to face a global shortage. Japanese CR manufacturers are already at their limit, holding down exports to prioritize domestic supply, while both producers and users of the product are struggling to navigate a situation where there are no expectations of a falloff in demand. A representative of one Japanese CR manufacturer has said that his...
Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd.’s (TYO:4005) ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) business has transitioned to the point where all EPDM products being produced are selling. The company’s EPDM sales to Japanese auto parts manufacturers in China are robust. Furthermore, a new EPDM plant in Saudi Arabia with an annual production capacity of 75,000 tons will begin operations within the current fiscal...
Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd. (TYO:4005) and Saudi Aramco have been moving forward somewhat more slowly than anticipated with the ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) plant under their joint Petro Rabigh project. But now the plant, scaled at 75,000 tons in annual production, looks to achieve mechanical completion sometime around April–June this year. Once there are finished products on hand, plans...
