Mitsui Chemicals and Korea's SKC to merger polyurethane businesses

Japan’s Mitsui Chemicals and South Korea’s SKC Co Ltd have signed a joint venture agreement to consolidate the polyurethane material businesses of both companies. MCI and SKC target to form the 50:50 joint venture company (JVC) by April 1, 2015 subject to completion of necessary procedures, such as the obtaining of relevant approvals and licenses.

The JVC, with revenues approximately $1.5 billion in 2015, is headed to be a global comprehensive manufacturer of polyurethane (PU) materials and targets sales of $ 2 billion per year around 2020.
 
The JVC will secure global top cost competitiveness by optimising resources / maximising efficiency and taking advantage of parent company raw materials. The JV will fully utilise the global networks of MCI and SKC covering Far East Asia, China, ASEAN, Europe, and the Americas based on close relationships with customers and the provision of quick and efficient technical services.

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The proposed joint venture will become one of the leading manufacturers of the raw materials required to make PU such as toluene diisocyanate (TDI), polymethylene polyphenyl isocyanate, methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) & their variants, polyols, etc. Mitsui and SKC will streamline PU manufacturing activities between the existing and planned facilities of the two companies spread across Japan, Korea and other parts of the world.
 
The Mitsui-SKC PU merger deal will also cover the bio-based polyols manufacturing facility in Gujarat (India) of Vithal Castor Polyols Pvt Ltd - a JV between Mumbai-based Jayant Agro, Mitsui and Japan's Itoh Oil Chemical Co Ltd. This plant, which is expected to start commercial operation in January 2015, will produce bio-polyol from non-edible plant derived fatty acid.