Italian PA producer Radici (Bergamo, Italy; www.radicigroup.com) says it has paid some EUR 35 mn for the Engineering Plastics division of India-based Ester Industries (Haryana; www.esterindustries.com). The unit includes compounds based on polyamides, polyesters, polycarbonate, ABS, POM, and polypropylene, and the transaction covers an Indian production facility in Halol, Gujarat, compounding lines, and research and development laboratories. Total production capacity purchased by Radici was reported at 20,000 t/y.

The Italian company, founded by the Singhania family in 1985, intends to continue and expand its second mainstay – the production of PET packaging films.

With the takeover and plans to integrate the Ester operations into its High Performance Polymers unit, Radici is strengthening its position in Asia, especially for customers in sectors such as E&E, automotive, and appliances “As a group, we have been represented in India since 2006,” said Silvio Dorati, MD at India Radici High Performance Polymers. “With this takeover we want to achieve annual sales of more than EUR 50 mn on the Indian market.”

The Radici group, which in addition to High Performance Polymers includes Specialty Chemicals and Advanced Textile Solutions divisions, reported 2021 sales of EUR 1.5 bn with around 3,000 employees. According to COO Maurizio Radici, the compounding business currently accounts for about one-third of turnover.

As part of its growth strategy, Radici launched an extensive investment package for the High Performance Polymers division last year, including a new compounding facility in Suzhou, China (see Plasteurope.com of 21.04.2021).