Performance elastomers firm Arlanxeo has announced a milestone on its sustainability journey. With the ISCC PLUS certifications of its EPDM plant in Geleen, The Netherlands, Butyl plant in Singapore, and EVM plant in Dormagen, Germany, Arlanxeo is pleased to offer a rapidly expanding range of sustainable synthetic rubber products under its Eco label.
Stephan van Santbrink will become chief executive officer of Arlanxeo on 1 October following Donald D. Chen’s retirement from this position. Chen will remain involved with the company in a senior advisory capacity until 1 February 2024 to ensure a smooth transition of leadership and the continuation of important strategic projects.
Following the final investment decision by Aramco and TotalEnergies to build a joint venture petrochemical facility in Jubail, Saudi Arabia, Arlanxeo announced it would set up a 140 ktpa plant nearby to produce Ultra High cis Polybutadiene (NdBR) for tyre treads as well as Lithium Butadiene Rubber (LiBR) for use in plastics. Construction is scheduled to start next year and Arlanxeo expects commercial operations to commence in 2027.
The research institute behind Sailun Group’s EcoPoint3 compounding technology has established strategic partnerships with two companies to explore synthetic rubber applications for use in tyre production. EVE Rubber Institute has signed agreements with Ecombine Advanced Materials and Arlanxeo High Performance Elastomer (Changzhou), with the three parties planning to draw upon their respective technological and marketing strengths to deliver innovations in liquid-phase mixing.
Arlanxeo has opened a new 65-kilotonne per annum polybutadiene (BR) production line in Brazil. Angelo Brazil, the company’s LATAM regional head, says that this “state-of-the-art BR production line” is a “direct response” to growing demand for the material in Latin America.
In response to local government environmental protection measures in the Yangtze River region and with the aim of establishing “one of the most modern NBR plants in the world,” Arlanxeo and TSRC are relocating their joint venture synthetic rubber facility. The move to a new location will be accompanied by an increase in NBR capacity from 30,000 to 40,000 tons per annum, growth that will support local demands and reinforce global supply.
Improving a tyre’s wear efficiency by up to 30 per cent while decreasing rolling resistance by up to six per cent without affecting any other performance area sounds like a tall order. But Bridgestone says that it has achieved this together with partners Arlanxeo and Solvay. The three firms presented Techsyn, the fruit of two years of collaboration, during an online presentation this afternoon.
Arlanxeo intends to close its Keltan production unit in Orange, Texas, USA in the second quarter of 2020. Arlanxeo says it will “strive to limit the impact of the closure by working in close cooperation with all affected stakeholders, both internally and externally”.
Arlanxeo reports that it has successfully ramped-up sales of EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) rubber produced in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and marketed under the Keltan KSA brand name. Marketing and sales of the new EPDM grades are based on an agreement concluded between Arlanxeo and Saudi Aramco in 2018, while collaboration has been further enhanced by the take-over of full ownership of Arlanxeo by Saudi Aramco beginning of 2019.
As of 1 May, Donald Chen will succeed Jorge Nogueira as chief executive officer of Arlanxeo. Nogueira is retiring from the rubber manufacturer after a career spanning nearly 40 years in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry.
On 10 August 2018 China’s Ministry of Commerce announced plans to implement anti-dumping duties ranging from 23.1 per cent to 75.5 per cent on synthetic halogenated butyl rubber from the United States, the European Union and Singapore starting 20 August 2018.
An agreement was signed today for the sale of Lanxess’ 50 per cent share in the Arlanxeo joint venture to its partner, Saudi Aramco. Should antitrust authorities approve the transaction, Lanxess will receive approximately 1.4 billion euros in cash after deducting debt and other financial liabilities for its 50 per cent share in the business, which is valued at 3.0 billion euros. Lanxess, which at the end of June 2018 had a net financial debt of 2.6 billion euros, says it plans to use the proceeds to strengthen its financial basis and reduce net financial debt.
Over the next three years, Arlanxeo will invest “mid double-digit million” euros to modernize its production sites in Triunfo, Brazil and La Wantzenau, France.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) covering the co-development of synthetic rubber technologies has been signed between Hankook Tire and Arlanxeo. Under the terms of the MoU, the two companies will jointly study and develop new high-performance synthetic rubber grades and applications, with the aim of increasing tyre performance from the early stages of product development.
Prices for Arlanxeo Buna and X_Butyl products have risen from 1 May 2018, an increase that Arlanxeo says have been “driven by the overall market situation.” Customers have been individually contacted regarding the price increases.
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