US Cargill to buy Arkema’s epoxidised vegetable oils business

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Cargill will buy Arkema’s epoxidised vegetable oils business, the US-based agribusiness said on Monday.

Arkema said the agreement values the business at $38.8m, which is 10 times its historical earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). Sales are $40m/year.

The acquisition should close in the fourth quarter of 2021.

The business includes a plant in Blooming Prairie, Minnesota. It combines soybean oil and other vegetable oils with hydrogen peroxide to produce epoxides.

Products include Arkema’s Vikoflex line of epoxidised vegetable oils.

Cargill said the acquisition will allow it to become an integrated producer of bio-based plasticizers and polyols.

“Adding this capability will allow us to innovate across the polyol value chain, transforming our vegetable oil into highly functional compounds that bring benefits like flexibility, durability and heat stability to a wide range of industrial products,” said Kurtis Miller, managing director in Cargill’s bioindustrial business.