Trinseo to divest Brazil automotive-plastics, latex businesses

TrinseoTrinseo recently announced its plans to sell its latex and automotive-plastics businesses in Brazil to a local company.

According to CEO Chris Pappas, the deal should be closed by the fourth quarter of the year.

Pappas stressed that the decision to sell the two businesses is not a reflection of a larger strategic shift for Trinseo, saying that the company will still invest in and grow its performance materials business.

However, Pappas said, the company decided to sell the two businesses because they would likely be more valuable to a local company that has a larger scale and critical mass in the region.

The US-based styrenics producer recorded a US$13 million charge during the second quarter for the estimated loss on the sale as well as for severance, said Barry Niziolek, chief financial market.

Trinseo operates two production sites in Brazil, according to its annual report. One, Guaruja, is in the company’s latex segment, and the second, Limao, is in the performance-plastics segment.