PETRONAS Chemicals completes acquisition of Perstorp

PETRONAS Chemicals Group Berhad (PCG), Malaysia´s leading integrated chemicals provider and part of the state-owned oil and gas company PETRONAS, announced that it has completed its acquisition of Perstorp on October 11, 2022.

In May this year, PETRONAS Chemicals Group Berhad signed a Securities Purchase Agreement with Financière Forêt S.à.r.l, a company under PAI Partners, a European private equity firm, to acquire the entire equity interest in Perstorp, a leading sustainability-driven global specialty chemicals company based in Sweden. With the completion of the acquisition, Perstorp is now PCG’s wholly-owned subsidiary. 

“This day marks a new beginning and exciting future for Perstorp as part of the PCG family. We are thrilled to explore the opportunities that can be unlocked by working closely with PCG. This will accelerate the next phase of growth and further strengthen us as a leading specialty chemicals company. Perstorp and PCG form a stronger business together,” said Perstorp’s President and CEO Jan Secher.

“We are delighted to have completed this acquisition. The acquisition is part of our stepping-out strategy, creating a new platform for our growth in the specialty chemicals industry. It also goes beyond earnings potential; Perstorp is a strategic fit with similar values and talented workforce who are experts in the industry. We are excited to welcome the Perstorp team to the PCG family,” said PCG Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Ir. Mohd Yusri Mohamed Yusof.  

Moving forward post-acquisition, PCG intends to continue preserving and growing the value of Perstorp, as the next few years will be a crucial chapter for both companies. Among the major development plans include the expansion of Perstorp´s global presence by strengthening its position in the Asia Pacific markets through PCG’s industrial know-how and tapping into its substantial customer base. 

Continued focus on specialty solutions and sustainable transformation  

“The combined technology and innovation power, as well as a complementing market positioning, create a new foundation upon which we, together with PCG, can leverage. We are proud of our frontrunner position in sustainability and will continue to lead the sustainable transformation in the chemical industry. I truly look forward to start this exciting journey with PCG together with our employees, partners and customers. Together we will lead change towards chemistry that advances everyday life for the better,” said Secher.  

PCG will strive to ensure the timely completion of Perstorp’s growth projects in a safe and cost-effective manner. Perstorp has several projects lined up in the near future, including the launch of Project Air which aims to reduce carbon emissions through the production of sustainable methanol. Recently, The European Union Innovation Fund selected Project Air, as one of the 17 large-scale green tech projects, which together will be granted more than EUR1.8 billion (USD1.75 billion) . Project Air is a gamechanger for the chemical industry, moving from fossil raw materials to recycled and bio-based feedstock, thereby enabling sustainable chemical products to a large variety of industries and end products. At full capacity, it will reduce global CO2 emissions with close to 500,000 metric tons per year from today’s levels, corresponding to one percent of current emissions in Sweden.   

“We are ready to advance further in our sustainability agenda. Perstorp’s Finite Material Neutral initiatives will serve as  a catalyst for PCG’s projects towards our aspiration of Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050,” Yusri said.