2010.08.01. 11:34
Wanhua to become sole owner of BorsodChem soon
<p>Budapest, July 28, 2010 (MTI-ECONEWS) - China s Wanhua plans to raise its stake to 100pc from the present 38pc in Hungarian chemicals company BorsodChem soon, and to make BorsodChem responsible for the operations of the Wanhua group in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the heads of the two companies said in a joint letter to BorsodChem employees.</p>
Wanhua has recently acquired a stake of 38pc in BorsodChem as well as an option to purchase the remaining shares from the current majority shareholders, Permira/Vienna Capital Partners.
Once BorsodChem becomes the group s full member, Wanhua will take third place among the world s biggest isocyanate producers, the letter said.
Wanhua plans to sell BorsodChem s isocyanate products to its European clients and will help BorsodChem s TDI sales on Asian markets.
"BorsodChem and Wanhua are now preparing for a close partnership with the aim to move onto a shared growth path and develop the Wanhua Group into a leading company in the global isocyanate sector," the two companies said in the letter MTI received on Wednesday. "To achieve this end, Wanhua intends to soon purchase the remaining BorsodChem shares from the majority shareholders and will become BorsodChem s sole owner", Yiansheng Ding, president of Wanhua Industrial Groups and Wolfgang Buchele, president and CEO of BorsodChem said.
When this has taken place, BorsodChem will oversee within the Wanhua Group the company s European, Middle-Eastern and African markets, the statement said. With 2,000 workers, 3 production bases and 6 sales units worldwide, Wanhua currently takes fifth place worldwide in terms of MDI production and is the biggest producer of MDI in Asia.
Thanks to one of its fully integrated MDI production base to be completed soon (Ningbo Wanhua Chemical Industry Park), Wanhua s MDI production capacity will grow to 800 ktonnes per year, which will make it the world s fourth biggest MDI-producer before the end of this year.
Wanhua will share its technological know-how with BorsodChem, as well as its experience gained in the isocyanate sector and MDI production in particular over the past twenty years as well as its advanced gas-phase TDI technology.
The Chinese company plans to cooperate closely with BorsodChem s current management and employees in a bid to further improve the Hungarian company s profitability, the letter said noting synergies between the two companies.
