BASF and Solenis combine paper and water chemicals businesses

BASF has announced that it will combine its paper wet-end and water chemicals business with Solenis, and the combined company will operate under the Solenis name.

For the paper industry, the new enterprise will cover the entire range of functional and process wet-end chemicals as well as solutions for the water cycle for paper mills in the paper industry. In the water treatment industry, the business will combine Solenis’ service capabilities with BASF’s broad water treatment chemicals platform.

In 2017, BASF’s paper wet-end and water chemicals business made sales of around €800m (US$950m), and it has around 1,300 employees globally. The transfer includes production sites and plants in the UK, US, Mexico, India, and Australia. The production plants in Germany and China will not be transferred but will deliver products and raw materials to the combined entity.

Closing is anticipated for the end of 2018, with BASF owning 49% of the combined company. Both companies will operate as normal until then.

“We will remain committed to the paper and water treatment industries through our 49% ownership of the combined entity and bring our…technologies, products, and production processes,” said Anup Kothari, president of BASF’s performance chemicals division.