On July 7, 2008, the Carlyle Group, an equity firm, announced that it would invest US$87 million in Sinorgchem (Group) Co., the largest manufacturer of PPD antioxidants and 4-ADPA intermediates in China. The company’s product line includes 6PPD and IPPD. Further financial details of the recently-closed deal were not disclosed.
According to Carlyle Group’s press release on the deal, Sinorgchem plans to use the investment to expand its operations overseas. Specific plans were not disclosed.
“Sinorgchem is a high-growth company that has the opportunity to further expand its market position,” said Yi Luo, Managing Director of Carlyle Asia Partners (CAP). “Carlyle has a long history of working with Chinese companies to create value and is an experienced investor in the chemical sector. We are confident that Sinorgchem’s overseas expansion will benefit from the operational expertise of our pool of senior chemical industry professionals, and from potential partnership opportunities with our portfolio companies and global network.”
As covered previously on this blog, Sinorgchem’s 4-ADPA and PPD business is the subject of a protracted legal dispute with the Flexsys unit of Solutia, which alleges that the Sinorgchem production process violates Flexsys patents. This on-going case has hung over Sinorgchem for the last few years, but several recent decisions have favored Sinorgchem. In December 2007, a federal appeals court reversed and remanded the finding that Sinorgchem had directly infringed on the Flexsys patents. In June 2008, the USITC rescinded a limited exclusion order barring the sale of rubber antidegradants manufactured by Sinorgchem in the United States. The ban had been instituted in July 2006.
Here is a prior post on the legal case, including links to numerous previous posts.
Press release from The Carlyle Group.
Here is a link to an article at FinanceAsia.com, which has additional information on the investment.
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