Speciality chemicals company Cabot has acquired NSCC Carbon (Jiangsu) Co. from Nippon Steel Carbon Co., a subsidiary of Nippon Steel Chemical & Material Co. The carbon black manufacturing facility in Pizhou, Jiangsu Province, China, with a capacity of 50,000 tonnes/year, was originally commissioned in 2015.
Terms were not disclosed but the purchase price, which is payable upon satisfaction of certain conditions, and the equipment and technology upgrades to the plant are expected to result in spending of approximately US$50 million over the next two years.
US-headquartered Cabot has been actively exploring and implementing opportunities to increase capacity in its global carbon black network through plant expansions, operational improvements and debottlenecking projects. This bolt-on acquisition will further support Cabot’s growth objectives and broaden its capabilities to serve customers in China.
“This acquisition showcases the continued execution of our ‘Advancing the Core’ strategy,” said Cabot President/CEO Sean Keohane. “It will not only strengthen our global leadership position in carbon black, but also enable us to continue to serve the growing needs of our specialty carbons customers worldwide. With our plants operating at high utilisation levels, this acquisition will enable us to continue to be the partner of choice for our customers in key growth markets.”
President of Nippon Steel Carbon, Shunichi Sakai, said, “We are pleased to transfer the business to Cabot that is the leader in the carbon black industry.”
The plant is scheduled to be temporarily mothballed to conduct maintenance and technology upgrades. The upgrades to manufacturing and environmental equipment will enable the site to be more flexible to manufacture different carbon black products and meet ever-stricter environmental standards, said Cabot.