Solvay (Brussels / Belgium; www.solvay.com) has completed its acquisition of privately held US-based OLED specialist Plextronics (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; www.plextronics.com) – see Plasteurope.com of 21.01.2014. The deal is seen as a milestone toward its goal of expanding into high-tech markets. Solvay initially offered USD 32.6m (EUR 23.6m) for all shares of the start-up company, which filed for US Chapter 11 protection from creditors in January.

The Belgian chemical producer, which has been an investor in Plextronics since 2007 and was last believed to hold around 47% of the US firm, said the investment would bolster its OLED technology and enable it to create a development platform in Asia.

Plextronics’ technology, which also finds application in OLED lighting and lithium-ion batteries, employs stacked layers of organic compounds that emit light when submitted to an electric current. This is said to boost luminance efficiency and ultimately enables bendable displays as it reduces their thickness and weight.

In line its expansion into OLED markets, Solvay is in the process of establishing up a new electronics laboratory at its research centre at Ewha Woman's University in Seoul City / South Korea. The facility is designed to bring the company’s advanced solutions closer to market and speed up joint development activities with customers as well as with existing and potential partners.