Ineos completes acquisition of Eastman’s US 600,000-ton acetic acid plant for US$500 million

On December 1, INEOS announced that it had completed the acquisition of Eastman’s Texas City production base, 600,000-ton acetic acid plant and all related third-party businesses from Eastman Chemical Company , the two parties also signed a memorandum of understanding to explore options for a long-term supply agreement for vinyl acetate monomer.

David, CEO of INEOS Acetyls
Brooks said: “We are pleased to complete this strategic acquisition, which will help drive the global growth goals of our acetyl business. Our focus now is to bring the manufacturing site, business and employees together, Eastman Dek All current employees at the Saas City production site have now been transferred to INEOS.”

Previously, INEOS licensed its Cativa® acetic acid technology to Eastman Chemical’s Texas City production base for the production of acetic acid. Eastman’s Texas City manufacturing site is ideally located to take advantage of competitively priced ingredients, which will help support our business growth and the sustainability of our manufacturing site. In addition, the plasticizer unit at the production site will continue to be owned by Eastman.

Ineos Acetyl Corporation, headquartered in Naperville, Illinois, USA, is a global manufacturer of acetic acid and a series of derivatives. It is Europe’s largest producer of acetic acid, acetic anhydride and ethyl acetate. These products are mainly used in daily consumer products and chemical intermediates for the production of derivative products. In the United States, INEOS Acetyl has been the leading supplier of acetic acid and acetic anhydride in North and South America for 45 years. In Asia, the business provides acetic acid and commercial services throughout the region. The company is one of the largest suppliers of acetic acid in Asia and has a strong reputation in the industry for adhering to world-class production standards.

The acquisition plan was announced on September 28 and completed on December 1. At the same time, INEOS’s global mergers and acquisitions are proceeding in an orderly manner.

In Europe, Ineos is also integrating business resources through acquisitions. In July, Ineos signed an agreement with Total Energy to acquire Total Energy’s Naphtachimie (720,000 tons/year steam cracker) and Appryl (300,000 tons/year)
PP business), Gexaro (270,000 tons/year aromatics business) and 3TC (naphtha storage), a total of 50% equity, currently belongs to the joint venture assets of both parties. A number of other infrastructure assets are also included in the deal, including the French portion of Total Energy’s ethylene pipeline network. As part of the agreement, Ineos will also acquire the southern section of Total Energy’s ethylene pipeline network from Lavala to the Lyon area. The central and northern sections from Lyon to Lorraine will be jointly owned by the two companies. Completion of the transaction is subject to negotiations and regulatory approvals and is expected to close around the end of 2023.

In Asia, in April, Ineos Phenol announced the completion of the acquisition of all assets of Mitsui Phenol Singapore Ltd. from Mitsui Chemicals, a leading Japanese chemical manufacturer, for a total consideration of US$330 million. The factory of Mitsui Phenol Singapore Co., Ltd. is located in Jurong Island, Singapore. The company has a turnover of US$750 million and produces more than 1 million tons of products every year. Its products include cumene (capacity 410,000 tons/year), phenol (capacity 310,000 tons) /year), acetone (capacity 185,000 tons/year), α-methylstyrene (capacity 20,000 tons/year) and bisphenol A (capacity 150,000 tons/year).

Also in China, Ineos has also increased its joint venture and cooperation layout. In July 2022, Ineos and Sinopec signed a series of joint venture cooperation agreements with a total value of approximately US$7 billion. The cooperation agreement includes that Ineos will acquire a 50% stake in Shanghai Secco Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (“Shanghai Secco”), a subsidiary of China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (SINOPEC); Ineos will cooperate with Sinopec on a 50% basis ∶ 50% equity ratio to jointly establish a new joint venture company, aiming to achieve 1.2 million tons / year ABS production capacity; INEOS and Sinopec will jointly establish a 50%: 50% equity ratio joint venture company to build a new 500,000 tons / year in Tianjin High density polyethylene (HDPE) project. Since Ineos acquired BP’s acetyl and aromatics business in January 2021, Ineos has established a basis for friendly cooperative operations with Sinopec.

Ineos is a global manufacturer of petrochemical products, consisting of 36 independent businesses, with 194 production sites in 29 countries around the world and a total of 26,000 employees. INEOS produces the raw materials and energy we use in our daily lives.