On 31 January 2017, Trinseo (Berwyn, Pennsylvania / USA; www.trinseo.com) will sell its 50% stake in its Sumika Styron Polycarbonate (SSPC, Niihama / Japan) joint venture to its partner Sumitomo Chemical (Tokyo / Japan; www.sumitomo-chem.co.jp/english). The companies have agreed not to disclose the financial details of the transaction. Under the terms of the deal, Sumitomo will continue to supply Trinseo’s Performance Plastics division with PC products from Niihama as part of a strategic partnership.

A look at Plasteurope.com’s Polyglobe capacity database (www.polyglobe.net) shows that SSPC has capacity for 60,000 t/y of PC. Japanese reports indicate that the company’s about 200 employees last posted sales of USD 176m. Sumika was set up in 1996 as a joint venture between Dow and Sumitomo. Following its spin-off from Dow in 2010, then-Styron took over its former parent’s stake in the jv (see Plasteurope.com of 28.10.2010).

More than two years ago, Trinseo ceased sourcing PC from Dow’s Freeport, Texas / USA plant, which was shuttered in late 2014 (see Plasteurope.com of 29.05.2014). Polyglobe shows that following the decision to exit the jv in Japan, Trinseo’s sole remaining PC line is a 145,000 t/y facility located in Stade / Germany. The global PC market has been trending towards oversupply for some years already – a fact that likely played a role in the US company’s decision to sell its stake in Sumika (for a more detailed report on PC, see Plasteurope.com of 11.11.2015).