Business Roundup

LyondellBasell Industries has acquired a 50% interest in the Dutch plastics recycler De Paauw Sustainable Resources. De Paauw operates plants in Hengelo and Enschede, the Netherlands, and recycles mostly polypropylene and low-density polyethylene.

CJ CheilJedang has signed an agreement to supply amino and organic acids to Lygos to make its Soltellus and Ecoteria products. Soltellus are biodegradable polymers used in water treatment and other applications, while Ecoteria is a family of malonates.

Methanex is restarting a methanol plant with 875,000 metric tons (t) of annual capacity in Trinidad and Tobago in September 2024. That same month, it will idle a methanol plant in the country with 1.1 million t of output when a natural gas supply contract expires.

Resonac is discontinuing its hard drive media business in Taiwan because of what it calls stagnant demand for hard drives. The Japanese chemical firm says it will liquidate the relevant assets starting next summer.


Venator, a maker of titanium dioxide and other pigments, has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The firm says it has reduced its debt from more than $1 billion to about $200 million. It is now owned mostly by its former lenders.

Syzygy Plasmonics has received an investment of undisclosed size from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Houston-based Syzygy intends to electrify production of chemicals such as ammonia with reactors that run on light instead of heat.

Sotio Biotech, a Czech Republic–based immune oncology specialist, will license an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) development program, ADC technology, and an option to license two additional programs from Synaffix, a Dutch ADC development firm owned by Lonza. Synaffix is eligible to receive up to $740 million in payments plus royalties.

Umicore will build a plant in Ontario for cathode active battery materials and their precursors. The factory, slated to open in 2025 and serve the auto market, will receive support from Canada’s Strategic Innovation Fund.