With the divestment of a third polypropylene plant, new polyolefins giant Basell (HQ: NL-2132 Hoofddorp; www.basell.com) has fully complied with the EU Commission´s requirement that the 50:50 joint venture of BASF and Shell must sell 620,000 t/y of PP polymer and 130,000 t/y of PP compounding capacity formerly operated by Targor, Elenac and Montell, with a sales volume of around EUR 500m.The restrictions are in exchange for the EU´s approval of the merger (see Plasteurope.com 07 and 20, 2000).

Following the acquisition of Basell´s 195,000 t/y PP resins plant at Cologne by Dow Chemical (PIE 08, 2001), ExxonMobil Chemical (Irving, Texas / USA; www.exxon-mobil.com) acquired the 250,000 t/y PP resins and the 130,000 t/y compounding plant at Lillebonne, France, on 1 May. The takeover of the Lillebonne facilities (formerly Targor and prior to that Hoechst), in conjunction with other investments, will lift ExxonMobil´s worldwide PP capacity to 2.2m t/y, making the US group a “global player in both durable and nondurable market segments,” according to senior vice president Jim Harris.

Lillebonne produces materials used mainly in automotive and home appliance applications. ExxonMobil also supplies PP nonwovens, health care and packaging markets. All 300 employees will transfer. The 180,000 t/y PP plant at Rozenburg, The Netherlands, is to go to Belgian floor and wall coverings producer Domo (B-9700 Oudenaarde; www.domo-international.com), which has been pursuing backward integration. The group with annual sales of EUR 665m also has capacities for manmade fibres as well as caprolactam and PA, in Ghent (Belgium) and Leuna (eastern Germany).