Solvay has agreed to acquire US-based Cytec for US$5.5 billion, making it reportedly the world’s second largest player in aerospace composite materials.
‘The proposed acquisition of Cytec marks a major step change in Solvay’s portfolio upgrade,’ said Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, CEO of Solvay.’ It is a unique opportunity for Solvay to boost its customer offerings in lightweighting with advanced materials in aerospace and automotive, as well as to strengthen its know-how with activities in mining chemicals.’
‘We are excited to be joining with Solvay, a leading player in the chemical industry with over 150 years of success,’ said Shane Fleming, CEO of Cytec. ‘Their strategic focus is perfectly aligned with our businesses, while the technology synergies with their specialty polymers and formulations expertise should accelerate our growth.’
Composite leader
Cytec is a leader in composite materials and in mining chemicals. In the composite materials sector, which represents two thirds of its sales, its principal market is primary and secondary structures for aircrafts. It is also developing new technological applications for composites in automotive. Headquartered in New Jersey with 4,600 employees across the globe, Cytec generated sales of US$ 2.0 billion in 2014. It sources almost half of its sales from North America, nearly a third from EMEA and the remainder from Asia Pacific and Latin America.
Cytec’s composites businesses will be integrated into Solvay’s Advanced Materials operating segment. Its mining chemicals as well as its niche additives and phosphine specialty chemical businesses will become part of Solvay’s Advanced Formulations segment.
This story is reprinted from material from Solvay, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
