INEOS Phenol acquires Mitsui Phenols Singapore

INEOS Phenol, British-based petrochemical producer, will acquire the entire asset base of Mitsui Phenols Singapore from Mitsui Chemicals, a Japanese petrochemicals major for a total of USD $330 million, the company said in a press release on its website.

From this acquisition, INEOS will obtain Mitsui Phenols Singapore, which has a turnover of $750 million and produces over one million mt of petrochemical products – which included 410,000 mt/year of cumene, 310,000mt/year of phenol, 185,000mt/year of acetone, 20,000 mt/year of alpha-methylstyrene and 150,000mt/year of bisphenol-A.

This acquisition presents an excellent opportunity to further improve the competitiveness of our business,” said Hans Casier, CEO INEOS Phenol. “These are good quality, well placed assets, complemented by a very experienced operations team and high safety, health and environmental standards.”

“Entering the Asian market via this acquisition gives INEOS Phenol a unique capability to support our global customers’ plans for future growth whilst at the same time we look forward to developing new markets and customer relationships associated with bisphenol A which will be a new product for INEOS” said Gordon Adams, Business Director INEOS Phenol.

INEOS Phenol is the largest producer of phenol and acetone with operating assets in Germany, Belgium and USA. The business produces just under 1.9 million mt of phenol and around 1.2 million mt of acetone annually.

The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approval and is currently anticipated to complete in Q1 2023.

Cumene is an essential raw material to produce phenol, acetone, alpha-methyl styrene, and BPA which are used in the production of polycarbonate, plastics, phenolic resins, synthetic fibers, and solvents. These products are used in a diverse range of markets, including the automotive, construction, electronics, healthcare, surgical, and fiber industries.