Grace To Acquire Chinese Catalysts Firm

W.R. Grace has agreed to acquire Noblestar Catalysts, a Qingdao, China-based maker of fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts, catalyst intermediates, and related products for petroleum refineries. Noblestar had sales of $108 million last year and employs 150 people. Grace says the acquisition provides immediate local capacity to serve customers in China, where it expects demand for refinery catalysts to grow 25% over the next five years. Last month, Grace signed a letter of understanding with local Chinese government officials regarding the manufacture of FCC catalysts in Qingdao.