Solvay (Brussels / Belgium; www.solvay.com) will pull out of Inovyn (London / UK; www.inovyn.com), its 50:50 vinyls joint venture with Ineos (Rolle / Switzerland; www.ineos.com), two years earlier than initially expected – probably in the second half of this year. Its exit will make Ineos the company’s sole owner. When the jv started trading on 1 July 2015, following an extending antitrust investigation by the European Commission, the Belgian partner said it intended to remain in the business until July 2018 – see Plasteurope.com of 03.07.2015.

In a statement this week, Solvay CEO Jean-Pierre Clamadieu said the company was able to exit early, thanks to the “fast and efficient” integration of the teams and assets that has made Inovyn “a sound and sustainable chlorovinyls player.” Exiting now, he said, will allow his company to focus on its portfolio transformation, while achieving a first step in de-leveraging the balance sheet. Clamadieu did not indicate whether Solvay may be planning an acquisition or other strategic move for which it needs cash.

On quitting Inovyn, Solvay will be entitled to a final performance-based exit payment of EUR 335m. This is nearly 20% more than the EUR 280m maximum agreed when plans for the jv were finalised in July 2015. At the closing, the Belgian group received a EUR 150m payment from Ineos for its European chlorvinyls activities while transferring pension and environmental liabilities worth around EUR 260m.

Commenting on Solvay’s early exit plans, Ineos chairman Jim Ratcliffe said the Swiss-based group is “very comfortable” with the arrangement. With the complete takeover by Ineos, Inovyn “will have an owner with a long-term vision that provides stability for its business and employees,” he said. With Solvay out of the picture, Ineos has firmed its grip on the European vinyls market. In advance of sealing the Inovyn joint venture, it acquired the 25% stake of BASF (Ludwigshafen / Germany; www.basf.com) in SolVin, then a PVC joint venture with Solvay.