France's Rhodia, Russia's Sibur to form surfactants joint venture

06 June 2011 09:57  [Source: ICIS news]

SINGAPORE (ICIS)--French chemical producer Rhodia and Russia's Sibur have signed a letter of intent to form a joint venture in specialty surfactants that will have a production base in Dzerzhinsk, Russia.

The 50:50 partnership hopes to create a leader in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) market, comprising of former Soviet republics, where the surfactants sector is growing at more than 6% annually, Rhodia said in a statement on Monday.

Production at Dzerzhinsk is expected to be operational in 2013. The site is near Sibur’s petrochemicals operations and 400km east of Moscow, Rhodia said in the statement.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

“This strategic partnership is a key step in our development in the dynamic surfactants market in the CIS and eastern Europe,” said Christophe Clemente, Rhodia Novecare’s vice president for Europe.

“Collaboration with Rhodia is in line with our strategy of expanding into carefully chosen specialty chemicals business segments,” said Sibur CEO Dmitry Konov in the statement.

By: Pearl Bantillo
+65 6780 4359

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