Mohamed Al-Mady, Vice Chairman and CEO of Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) and Peter Huntsman, President and CEO of Huntsman Corporation (NYSE: HUN) announced the completion of the purchase of Huntsman's UK Base Chemicals and Polymers business. Under the terms of the deal SABIC has acquired 100 per cent of the shares of Huntsman Petrochemicals (UK) Ltd for a purchase price of US$ 685 million in cash. The new entity has been renamed SABIC UK Petrochemicals. The acquisition marks a significant step in SABIC's global growth plans. The former Huntsman business adds substantial capacity to SABIC Europe and complements the group's strong home base in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. All 850 Huntsman Petrochemicals (UK) Ltd employees will transfer to SABIC. The acquired manufacturing business operates an 865 ktpa ethylene/ 400 ktpa propylene cracker and a 1.3 million tpa Aromatics facility with logistical facilities at Wilton and North Tees. SABIC will complete the construction of a new 400 ktpa capacity polyethylene (LDPE) plant in Wilton, Teesside. It is scheduled to come on stream by the end of 2007. Commenting on the acquisition, Al-Mady said, “I am pleased that the regulators have given their unconditional approval for this deal. This acquisition will enable us to accelerate our growth in Europe and strengthen our global market position. It will also provide additional value to our customers.” “We are fully committed to realizing the full potential of this acquisition and we intend to invest and grow the business in the future, including the continued construction of the new polyethylene plant. We are fortunate also to have acquired a talented and committed workforce whom we welcome into the SABIC family. We now start with the alignment and integration of the new business within our SABIC Europe organization,” said Boy Litjens, CEO SABIC Europe, according to a report carried by Sabic's website.
