Ttitanium dioxide pigment manufacturer Tronox (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma / USA; www.tronox.com) emerged from US Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings on 14 February and said it is now “well positioned to compete.” The company filed for bankruptcy protection in January 2009, citing the credit crunch and environmental liabilities – see Plasteurope.com of 14.01.2009. In July 2010 (see Plasteurope.com of 20.07.2010) it filed a reorganisation plan that called for remediation of environmental damage at its US production sites caused by predecessor companies.

Tronox produces the white pigments sold under the trade names “Tiona” and “Cristal” at three worldwide locations, including Hamilton, Mississippi / USA; Botlek / The Netherlands and Kwanina / Australia. Overseas subsidiaries were unaffected by the bankruptcy proceedings.

CEO Dennis L. Wanlass said Tronox had successfully restructured its balance sheet while maintaining its business relationships and “significantly improving” its operating performance. He said the TiO2 producer had also resolved its “substantial environmental and other liabilities” through a comprehensive settlement,” details of which were not disclosed.