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Coating features BASF nanotechnology
F O C U S DuPont powder paints DuPont has 60,000 employees around the world. DuPont Powder Coatings France develops, produces and sells industrial powder paints from Montbrison, France. It invested €2 M in increasing production on this site by 25% in 2006 and it now makes more than 25,000 tonnes. It has links with more than 40 countries. Its Alesta brand is aimed in the architecture sector. Double Liaison, May 2007, 2 (556), 27 (in French)
Akzo Nobel invests in Vietnamese coatings plant Akzo Nobel is planning to build its first coatings plant in Vietnam and has the option of acquiring a plot of land in the vicinity of Ho Chi Minh City. The facility could come online at the end of 2008. Akzo also has plans to establish a plant for industrial finishing products at Tjianjin, China, before the end of 2008 and to expand the existing production location at Dongguan, China, with a second plant. The lacquers produced by Akzo in China are intended for the furniture industry and go mainly to customers who produce for the US. The company’s biggest Chinese customer for wood lacquers, Lacquer Craft, is studying the possibility of producing for the Chinese market. Het Financieele Dagblad, 13 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.fd.nl/) (in Dutch)
Akzo Nobel predicts $2 bn in China by 2012 Akzo Nobel has increased its turnover target for China from $1.5 bn by 2010 to $2 bn by 2012. The company predicts that by 2012 20% of its turnover will be generated in Pacific Asia. If Akzo achieves its target it will mean that over the last 12 years it has quadrupled its turnover in China. The company’s Chinese turnover reached $800 M in 2006. After the recently announced investment of €250 M JUNE 2007
O N
POWDER
in China, Akzo will have 22 plants in that country and around 5000 employees. Het Financieele Dagblad, 14 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.fd.nl/) (in Dutch)
Reichhold named top alkyds & powder coatings resin supplier in Brazil Reichhold has been named the top alkyd resin supplier in Brazil for the 9th time at the 11th annual Paint & Pintura Awards, an event that recognizes excellence among suppliers to the paint and coatings industry in Brazil. Reichhold was also named top powder coatings resin supplier. NB Paint & Pintura is the most important awards programme in Brazil for coatings. Press release from: Reichhold, Triangle Park, NC, USA, Tel: 919 990 7952, Website: http://www.reichhold.com (31 May 2007)
ICI rejects Dutch rival’s £7.2 bn offer ICI is the latest UK industrial giant to attract interest from foreign predators after the maker of Dulux paint rejected a £7.2 bn takeover approach from the Dutch rival Akzo Nobel. Akzo Nobel was due to make a formal statement on 18 Jun 2007 detailing its plans and has appointed the investment bank Morgan Stanley to advise it. The indicative 600p-a-share offer was understood to have been dismissed as too low to tempt ICI’s management into talks. One hurdle for Akzo Nobel is ICI’s pension scheme. When the company last reported results, it had an overall net liability of £1.3 bn, despite recent moves to reduce its deficit. ICI has future pension liabilities of £9.2 bn, and Akzo would need to meet ICI’s pension trustees if it continues its pursuit. ICI’s share price has risen 25% in recent months on the back of speculation that Akzo Nobel was preparing a bid. Akzo Nobel’s hand was strengthened when it sold its pharmaceutical division, Organon Biosciences, for
C OAT I N G S £7.5 bn earlier in 2007. ICI’s shares closed on 15 Jun 2007 at 546.5p, giving the company a market value of £6.6 bn. The Independent, 18 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.independent.co.uk)
The Last Stand for ICI ICI’s decision to reject the initial advances of Akzo Nobel suggests there is still life in the old dog. Yet despite the strong words, the Dutch company’s move is viewed as the beginning of the end for one of Britain’s great industrial names, with a takeover now seen as inevitable. Although the Dutch company still faces a number of hurdles before it can proceed, analysts are unanimous that the former British industrial bellwether is now up for grabs. Major shareholders in ICI have backed ICI’s decision to reject the offer out of hand on the basis that the bid undervalues the company. In its current form, ICI is focused on coatings, starches and adhesives after disposing of more than 50 divisions over the past decade. Akzo Nobel, which already owns Crown Paint in the UK, is keen to add Dulux to its stable and despite its initial 600p-a-share offer being spurned, the company could justify a higher bid. Peter Cartwright, an analyst with Evolution Securities, said that based on ICI’s growth potential and a modest assumption of £100 M of synergies, it could justify a 700p-a-share offer. The Independent, 19 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.independent.co.uk)
Coating features BASF nanotechnology Akzo Nobel’s Herbol subsidiary has launched what it says is the first professional exterior coating that uses BASF’s COL.9 nanobinder. Façades treated with the new coatings pick up less dirt and have excellent colour retention. Chemical and Engineering News, 30 Apr 2007, 85 (18), 18
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Akzo Nobel invests in Vietnamese coatings plant Akzo Nobel is planning to build its first coatings plant in Vietnam and has the option of acquiring a plot of land in the vicinity of Ho Chi Minh City. The facility could come online at the end of 2008. Akzo also has plans to establish a plant for industrial finishing products at Tjianjin, China, before the end of 2008 and to expand the existing production location at Dongguan, China, with a second plant. The lacquers produced by Akzo in China are intended for the furniture industry and go mainly to customers who produce for the US. The company’s biggest Chinese customer for wood lacquers, Lacquer Craft, is studying the possibility of producing for the Chinese market. Het Financieele Dagblad, 13 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.fd.nl/) (in Dutch)
Akzo Nobel predicts $2 bn in China by 2012 Akzo Nobel has increased its turnover target for China from $1.5 bn by 2010 to $2 bn by 2012. The company predicts that by 2012 20% of its turnover will be generated in Pacific Asia. If Akzo achieves its target it will mean that over the last 12 years it has quadrupled its turnover in China. The company’s Chinese turnover reached $800 M in 2006. After the recently announced investment of €250 M JUNE 2007
O N
POWDER
in China, Akzo will have 22 plants in that country and around 5000 employees. Het Financieele Dagblad, 14 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.fd.nl/) (in Dutch)
Reichhold named top alkyds & powder coatings resin supplier in Brazil Reichhold has been named the top alkyd resin supplier in Brazil for the 9th time at the 11th annual Paint & Pintura Awards, an event that recognizes excellence among suppliers to the paint and coatings industry in Brazil. Reichhold was also named top powder coatings resin supplier. NB Paint & Pintura is the most important awards programme in Brazil for coatings. Press release from: Reichhold, Triangle Park, NC, USA, Tel: 919 990 7952, Website: http://www.reichhold.com (31 May 2007)
ICI rejects Dutch rival’s £7.2 bn offer ICI is the latest UK industrial giant to attract interest from foreign predators after the maker of Dulux paint rejected a £7.2 bn takeover approach from the Dutch rival Akzo Nobel. Akzo Nobel was due to make a formal statement on 18 Jun 2007 detailing its plans and has appointed the investment bank Morgan Stanley to advise it. The indicative 600p-a-share offer was understood to have been dismissed as too low to tempt ICI’s management into talks. One hurdle for Akzo Nobel is ICI’s pension scheme. When the company last reported results, it had an overall net liability of £1.3 bn, despite recent moves to reduce its deficit. ICI has future pension liabilities of £9.2 bn, and Akzo would need to meet ICI’s pension trustees if it continues its pursuit. ICI’s share price has risen 25% in recent months on the back of speculation that Akzo Nobel was preparing a bid. Akzo Nobel’s hand was strengthened when it sold its pharmaceutical division, Organon Biosciences, for
C OAT I N G S £7.5 bn earlier in 2007. ICI’s shares closed on 15 Jun 2007 at 546.5p, giving the company a market value of £6.6 bn. The Independent, 18 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.independent.co.uk)
The Last Stand for ICI ICI’s decision to reject the initial advances of Akzo Nobel suggests there is still life in the old dog. Yet despite the strong words, the Dutch company’s move is viewed as the beginning of the end for one of Britain’s great industrial names, with a takeover now seen as inevitable. Although the Dutch company still faces a number of hurdles before it can proceed, analysts are unanimous that the former British industrial bellwether is now up for grabs. Major shareholders in ICI have backed ICI’s decision to reject the offer out of hand on the basis that the bid undervalues the company. In its current form, ICI is focused on coatings, starches and adhesives after disposing of more than 50 divisions over the past decade. Akzo Nobel, which already owns Crown Paint in the UK, is keen to add Dulux to its stable and despite its initial 600p-a-share offer being spurned, the company could justify a higher bid. Peter Cartwright, an analyst with Evolution Securities, said that based on ICI’s growth potential and a modest assumption of £100 M of synergies, it could justify a 700p-a-share offer. The Independent, 19 Jun 2007, (Website: http://www.independent.co.uk)
Coating features BASF nanotechnology Akzo Nobel’s Herbol subsidiary has launched what it says is the first professional exterior coating that uses BASF’s COL.9 nanobinder. Façades treated with the new coatings pick up less dirt and have excellent colour retention. Chemical and Engineering News, 30 Apr 2007, 85 (18), 18
7