Ashland to build plant in France

Hempel invests in decorative coatings business

With the acquisition of UK-based decorative coatings manufacturer Crown Paints, Hempel takes a step towards achieving its strategic goal: to grow its decorative coatings business. The decorative segment represents a significant part of the global coatings industry and is expected to keep growing. Therefore, the acquisition of a company strong in the decorative market is an important part of the Danish-based paint producer’s strategy. The acquisition will not change Crown Paints’ brands’ identities, and the daily management and decision power will also remain local.

Ashland buys International Speciality Products Inc.

Jotun opens new offices in Saudi Arabia

Eastman Plans Debottlenecking in Manufacture of Isobutyric Acid at Texas from December 2011

“We have completed what can be seen as a significant debottleneck in our production for Eastman™ isobutyric acid,” says Chip Millican, business manager for Organic Intermediates in Eastman’s Performance Chemicals and Intermediates segment. “We are seeing a growing demand, both internally and externally, for the product. This additional capacity will enable us to meet those needs.”

Eastman™ isobutyric acid is used in various applications including fragrance intermediates, the manufacture of numerous esters and varnish for coatings applications. Esters of isobutyric acid are used as solvents for various applications where desirable odors and flavor characteristics are important. It is also used to prepare certain types of photoinitiators for UV-curable inks and coatings. UV-curable systems generally have low VOC levels, thus continue to gain popularity as a more environmentally responsible choice for coating substrates such as wood flooring, furniture, paper, plastics and metal.

“The debottlenecking will allow us to continue to be a reliable global supplier for years to come,” adds Millican. “In 2010 we added additional manufacturing capability at our Singapore facility of 3 million pounds and completed a 10 million pound expansion in 2009 at our Longview, Texas, site. Eastman is the largest isobutyric acid manufacturer in the world.”

About Eastman

Eastman’s chemicals, fibers and plastics are used as key ingredients in products that people use every day. Approximately 10,000 Eastman employees around the world blend technical expertise and innovation to deliver practical solutions. The company is committed to finding sustainable business opportunities within the diverse markets and geographies it serves. A global company headquartered in Kingsport, Tenn., USA, Eastman had 2010 sales of $5.8 billion.

Source: Eastman

LANXESSBuilds new Office in Brussels

BRUSSELS/LEVERKUSEN — Specialty chemicals company LANXESS will open an office of its own in Brussels.

“To be successful as a European company in the face of global competition in the long term we have to intensify our active dialogue with politicians and society at a European level,” said Axel C. Heitmann, Chairman of the LANXESS Board of Management. The office is located on the “Avenue Michel Ange” and thus in the immediate vicinity of the European institutions. It will be headed by Stefan Borst, previously EU correspondent of the news magazine Focus.

In the evening, the company will invite high-ranking representatives from politics, industry and the media to the “LANXESS Debate 2011″ at the NRW liaison office in Brussels. There, the experts will discuss the topic “Europe’s new transport policy – economic driver or economic disadvantage?”. Joining Axel C. Heitmann for the podium discussion will be Harry K. Voigtsberger, Minister of Economics and Transport of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, Michael Cramer, member of the European Parliament and spokesman for transport policy in the Europe fraction of Die Grünen/EFA, and Matthias Ruete, Director-General for Mobility and Transport of the European Commission.

About LANXESS

LANXESS is one of the leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 7.1 billion in 2010 and currently around 14,850 employees in 24 countries. The company is represented at 45 production sites worldwide. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of plastics, rubber, intermediates and specialty chemicals.

Rising profit for BASF Coating section

A boom in coatings and higher prices helped offset still-struggling construction activity to deliver a whopping $25% first-quarter sales increase in to BASF, the world’s largest chemical company.

The company reported a “powerful start to 2011,” with strong sales and earnings as well as higher prices and volumes, especially in the chemicals business. Sales volumes rose in nearly all segments, compared with the first quarter of 2010.

Sales grew to €19.4 billion (about $28.1 billion US), and earnings soared by 40% to €2.7 billion (about $3.9 billion US). Gross profit on sales surged by 25.1%, to €5.5 billion (about $7.9 billion US).

Coatings: Rising Demand

Demand for products in BASF’s Coatings division rose in all regions, and “sales grew significantly overall,” BASF reported.

The company posted higher sales volumes in automotive OEM coatings, automotive refinish coatings and architectural coatings, although sharply increased raw materials prices put a crimp in earnings. Nevertheless, earnings slightly exceeded the high level of the previous first quarter, due to good demand.

Dow Chemicals increased sales by 20% in Q1

The Dow Chemical Company achieved sales of $14.7 billion in the first quarter of 2011, a 20 percent increase compared with the same period last year. Top-line growth was driven by an 8 percent increase in volume and a 12 percent increase in price. All operating segments and geographic areas reported double-digit sales increases.

At a Company level, volume grew 8 percent, with gains in all operating segments. Double-digit volume growth was reported in Health and Agricultural Sciences (14 percent) and Electronic and Specialty Materials (11 percent). On a geographic basis, volume growth was reported in all geographic areas, with the largest gains in Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) (15 percent) and Asia Pacific (8 percent).

Price rose 12 percent at a Company level. Price gains were broad-based, with double-digit increases in all geographic areas. All operating segments reported double-digit price increases, with the exception of Electronic and Specialty Materials and Health and Agricultural Sciences (each up 3 percent). Price gains more than offset a $700 million increase in purchased feedstock and energy costs.

At a Company level, EBITDA rose $622 million, or 34 percent, to $2.4 billion. This represents the second highest quarterly EBITDA on record for the Company. Performance Products and Chemicals and Energy each posted EBITDA increases in excess of 50 percent, and Coatings and Infrastructure EBITDA increased more than 30 percent. Health and Agricultural Sciences EBITDA reached a new quarterly record of $406 million and Plastics EBITDA exceeded $800 million.

At a Company level, EBITDA margin expanded 300 basis points versus the same period last year. This represents the eighth consecutive quarter of year-over-year margin expansion. Margins expanded in Chemicals and Energy and Plastics as the Company benefited from U.S. Gulf Coast feedstock and energy fundamentals. Performance Products and Coatings and Infrastructure also drove margin gains in the quarter.

Reported earnings for the quarter were $0.54 per share, compared with $0.41 per share in the same period last year. The Company earned $0.82 per share in the quarter, excluding certain items. This compares with earnings of $0.43 per share in the same quarter last year, excluding certain items. Certain items in the current quarter consisted of a loss on the early extinguishment of debt of $0.26 per share, and Rohm and Haas acquisition-related integration costs of $0.02 per share, both reflected in Corporate.

Dow’s global operating rate was 83 percent, flat with the same year ago period. Sequentially, the Company’s operating rate rose 2 percentage points.

Research and Development (R&D) expenses declined slightly (2 percent) versus the same period last year. The Company continued to invest in its technology-intensive segments, particularly Health and Agricultural Sciences, which increased its R&D investment by 10 percent, and Electronic and Specialty Materials, which was up 7 percent.

Akzo Nobel announced 16% revenue incresaes in Q1

Akzo Nobel N.V. reported a 16 percent gain in Q1 revenue compared with the same period in 2010. Group revenue of €3,762 million (Q1 2010: €3,246 million) reflects a 7 percent increase in volumes and a 4 percent positive price effect.

Double-digit revenue growth was achieved in all three Business Areas, driven by the company’s continued strength in high growth markets and demand recovery in mature economies.

Raw material price inflation has been significant. Pricing and cost reduction actions are on-going to mitigate the impact of this and AkzoNobel remains confident that it will be able to compensate for these increases.

During the quarter, EBITDA improved by 10 percent to €437 million, although overall EBITDA margins declined slightly compared with Q1 2010, reflecting the lag effect of pricing and margin management actions to compensate raw material price increases. Sequentially, from Q4 2010, the EBITDA margin increased from 10.4 percent to 11.6 percent as mitigating actions took effect. The company has a seasonal pattern in that revenue and profitability are lowest in the fourth and first quarters of the year.

CEO Hans Wijers:

“These results demonstrate further progress in working towards our medium-term strategic goals and in managing the current inflationary headwinds. I am particularly pleased with the strong volume and pricing behind our 16 percent revenue growth, which gives me confidence that we have been able to maintain or improve market share across the portfolio.”

“There continue to be considerable differences in the strength of demand across our geographies and end markets, but we have continued to grow revenue in both high growth and mature markets. Our revenue growth in high growth markets continued to be impressive.”

“Raw material prices have continued to rise, as we indicated last quarter. Pricing and cost reduction actions are on-going to mitigate the impact of these higher prices and we remain confident that we will be able to compensate for these increases.”

“Specialty Chemicals continues to experience strong demand and both revenue and EBITDA grew strongly. Performance Coatings achieved considerable growth in high growth markets and benefitted from the acquisitions made last year. The successful roll-out of our Decorative Paints products to 3,500 Walmart stores in the US, together with continued strong growth in Asia and Latin America, underpinned the Decorative Paints performance.”

Outlook 2011 reiterated

AkzoNobel expects to make further progress on its medium-term strategic ambitions. The company is aiming for more than 5 percent revenue and EBITDA growth in 2011.

Several significant investments were announced in the first quarter of 2011. Two were made by our Pulp and Paper Chemicals business – one two supply the world’s largest pulp mill in Brazil and the other to expand our Expancel business in Sweden – while a new Bermocoll production facility in China will also contribute to the company’s growth ambitions.

AkzoNobel continued to make progress on its strategic sustainability agenda in the first quarter of 2011. In the area of operational eco-efficiency, the company is on track to realizing the overall ambition of reducing its footprint by 30 percent by 2015. The company also made improvements in working towards the stated ambition to reduce its carbon footprint by 25 percent per ton of product by 2020.

About AkzoNobel

AkzoNobel is one of the largest global paints and coatings company and a major producer of specialty chemicals. They supply industries and consumers worldwide with innovative products and are passionate about developing sustainable answers for our customers. Their portfolio includes well known brands such as Dulux, Interpon, International and Eka. Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

Source: AkzoNobel

PPG increased sales by 13%

Coatings segments delivered strong results in the first quarter, said PPG chairman CEO Charles E. Bunch.