A Chinese proposal to set up a refinery along with a downstream petrochemical complex near Karachi is advancing steadily as requests for 500-1,000 acres has been submitted to the provincial governments of Sindh and Balochistan.  

Trelleborg announced that its business area Trelleborg Sealing Solutions will invest a total of approximately SEK 120 million (~ EUR 12.6 million) during 2017 – 2020 in a new production facility for sealing solutions in Denmark. The production at the current manufacturing facility in Helsingør will be relocated to the nearby new facility, said the company. It is estimated that production will be able to commence in the new facility at the beginning of 2020.

BASF SE announced that it plans to establish the new group company BASF 3D Printing Solutions GmbH as of 1 September 2017. This wholly-owned subsidiary of BASF New Business GmbH will be headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany, at the site of InnovationLab GmbH. It will focus on establishing and expanding the business with materials, system solutions, components and services in the field of 3D printing. The company will work closely with researchers and application engineers from BASF and external partners, such as universities and potential customers, in order to develop the right solutions for a wide array of requirements, said BASF.

DuPont and The Dow Chemical Company announced that all required regulatory approvals and clearances have been received, that all conditions to closing of their merger of equals have been satisfied, and that their merger of equals will close after the market closes on 31 August 2017.

Orion Engineered Carbons announced that it will increase the prices for all rubber carbon black grades in the USA. Effective from 1 September 2017 or as contracts allow, the prices will be adjusted by 5 cents per pound.

VMI announced that major invention patents related to tire building technology are upheld in China. According to the company, these patents were challenged by Safe-Run as their defense in a legal dispute, in which VMI is suing Safe-Run for infringement of VMI’s protected IP.

Colombo Rubber Traders Association (CRTA) Chairman Sunil Poholiyadde said at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the CRTA that the current performance of the industry was not at optimum. 

Songwon Industrial Group, a manufacturer of polymer stabilisers, and Sabo S.p.A., a producer of hindered amine light stabilisers (HALS), have announced plans to further strengthen their collaborative partnership.

Hundreds of residents living along the banks of the Kali Anyar river in Surakarta, Central Java, are set to be relocated this month (Aug 2017).

R.D. Abbott Company, Inc. announced that it has signed a revised distribution agreement with 3M for select fluoropolymers and additives accounts within the USA, effective from 1 April 2017.