Kemira has completed the divestment of its Oil & Gas related portfolio to Sterling Specialty Chemicals LLC, a US subsidiary of Artek Group, a global industrial chemicals group based in India. The divestment was announced on December 4, 2023.
The transaction enables Kemira to focus on its core businesses and accelerate its profitable growth strategy by focusing on growing in water treatment, building a leading renewable solutions portfolio and creating a digital services business.
“The divestment of Oil & Gas is an important step on our transformation journey and it will clarify our focus on sustainability and our strategic priorities. We are now in a strong position to look for growth opportunities in line with our strategy. At the same time, I want to thank all transferring employees for their contribution to Kemira,” says Petri Castrén, Interim President and CEO at Kemira.
“Today I am pleased to welcome new employees to the Artek Group and to be part of our vision of becoming a leading oil & gas specialty chemicals player. The acquisition is a good strategic fit for us and we are looking forward to exploring exciting future growth opportunities,” says Vishal Goenka, Director at Artek Group.
Details of the transaction
The total consideration on a cash and debt-free basis amounts to approximately USD 280 million, around EUR 260 million with today’s exchange rate, subject to ordinary closing adjustments. Kemira expects to record a loss of around EUR 97 million during Q4 2023. The loss will be booked as an item affecting comparability.
The revenue to be carved-out from Kemira was around EUR 430 million in 2022. This includes Oil & Gas revenue of EUR 373 million in 2022. The remaining carved-out revenue of around EUR 57 million consisted of non-Oil & Gas industrial polymer sales through indirect channels that are produced in manufacturing facilities within the scope of the transaction.
Approximately 250 employees will transfer to the buyer as part of the transaction, which includes Kemira’s manufacturing facilities in Mobile, Columbus and Aberdeen in the United States and the novel liquid polymer (NLP) manufacturing assets in Botlek, the Netherlands. The closing of the Teesport manufacturing facility in the United Kingdom is expected to happen later, subject to site-specific closing conditions.
Source: kemicalinfo.com
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