SABIC Will Sell Polymer Venture Stake To BASF

SABIC Innovative Plastics, the former GE Plastics, is selling its 50% interest in a polybutylene terephthalate joint venture in Schwarzheide, Germany, to its partner BASF. PBT is an engineering polymer used in electrical and other applications because of its resistance to high temperatures. The partnership, established in 1995, has 100,000 metric tons of annual PBT capacity based on the intermediate dimethyl terephthalate. SABIC says it wants to focus on PBT made from terephthalic acid. It also wants to focus on its iQ PBT resins, which are derived from the depolymerization of postconsumer polyethylene terephthalate. BASF says the transaction will allow it to consolidate its strong position in PBT.