Solvay (Brussels / Belgium; www.solvay.com) has joined Degussa (Düsseldorf / Germany; www.degussa.com) in the race to compete with Victrex (Thornton Cleveleys / UK; www.victrex.com), market leader and up to now sole commercial producer of polyether ether ketone (PEEK). The Belgian group said its planned acquisition of the polymers division of India´s Gharda Chemicals (Mumbai; www.gharda.com) will provide a platform for the “development, manufacturing and marketing of a new range of specialty grades of ultra-high performance polymers,” also to include high performance sulphones.

Gharda´s polymers division, which has annual sales of around EUR 10m, operates a state-of-the art R&D centre and production plant with 180 employees at Panoli in India´s Gujarat state. Solvay plans to merge the business into its US-based Solvay Advanced Polymers unit at Alpharetta, Georgia (www.solvayadvancedpolymers.com). Another newcomer to PEEK, Degussa is close to finalising an 80:20 joint venture with China´s Jilin University.