INEOS Phenol acquires Mitsui Phenols Singapore in Jurong Island

INEOS Phenol is acquiring the entire asset base of Mitsui Phenols Singapore in Jurong Island, Singapore, Ltd. from Mitsui Chemicals, a leading Japanese chemicals manufacturer, for USD330 million.

“Entering the Asian market via this acquisition gives INEOS Phenol a unique capability to support our global customers’ plans for future growth whilst at the same time we look forward to developing new markets and customer relationships associated with bisphenol A which will be a new product for INEOS,” said Gordon Adams, business director, INEOS Phenol.

The business has a turnover of USD750 million and produces more than one million tons per year (tpy) of product, including cumene (410 000 tpy), phenol (310 tpy), acetone (185 000 tpy) alpha-methylstyrene (20 000 tpy) and bisphenol A (150 000 tpy).

The addition of the Jurong phenol and BPA assets provide a good fit with the company’s existing asset portfolio and expertise of INEOS Phenol and presents significant integration opportunities with its manufacturing sites in Germany, Belgium and the U.S.A.

Cumene is an essential raw material for the production of phenol, acetone, alpha-methyl styrene and BPA, which are used in the production of polycarbonate, plastics, phenolic resins, synthetic fibres and solvents. These products are used in a diverse range of end markets, including the automotive, construction, electronics, healthcare, surgical and fibre industries.

“We are very pleased to acquire the Singapore Phenols business on Jurong Island, from Mitsui Chemicals. INEOS Phenol is today the leading phenol producer in the world, adding production and supply capabilities in a prime location in Asia has been a long-term business objective and will help us to further serve our global customer base. This acquisition presents an excellent opportunity to further improve the competitiveness of our business,” said Hans Casier, CEO of INEOS Phenol. “These are good quality, well placed assets, complemented by a very experienced operations team and high safety, health and environmental standards.”