Quelle/Publication: European Coatings Journal

Ausgabe/Issue: 07-08/2008
Seite/Page:

Rockwood and Kemira

to combine businesses

Rockwood and Kemira have agreed to form a
joint venture for their TiO2 pigments and functional
additives. It will be headquartered at Sachtleben
Chemie in Duisburg, Rockwood’s German TiO2
business. Sachtleben’s Chairman Prof Dr Wolf-Dieter
Griebler will head the new joint venture. Towards
EUROPEAN COATINGS JOURNAL he explains the
background, the plans and how the new company will
affect the competition.
TiO2 joint venture
?What was the background for this decision?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: Kemira made a decision to divest the
pigment business in spring 2007. This process did not yield
result as Kemira could not obtain adequate value for the
business. For Rockwood’s white pigment business, handled
by Sachtleben in Duisburg, Germany, Kemira’s pigment
activities make a perfect fit. There is only minor overlap in
the product portfolios which are very complementary.
?What role did the thought of consolidation play?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: The aspect of consolidation was not
the driver for the formation of the joint venture. But if you
like to see it like this, you can treat the joint venture as part
of a market consolidation within the industry.
?What is the strategic background of the decision to locate
the joint venture in Germany?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: With 61 % of shares Rockwood is the
major shareholder and will have the industrial leadership
of the joint venture. Sachtleben has good track record of
profitable operations and business development. Therefore
the decision was made to operate the joint venture under
the name of Sachtleben and to locate the headquarter in
Duisburg. As a company with an important exposure to
the European market a presence in central Europe is of
advantage. On the other hand the joint venture will keep a
strong foothold in Finland to serve the Baltic, Scandinavian
and Eastern European markets.
?Some players refer to the tendency of TiO2 manufacturers
to move into the German market. What do you think about
that?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: Stable economic growth and the
strong EUR made Europe and Germany a very attractive
market especially for US manufacturers. This tendency was
amplified by the staggering US economy and the downturn
in the US housing market. As a European manufacturer of
titanium dioxide we are not really pleased with this situation
because necessary price adjustments in the industry during
the last two years failed. On the background of double digit
cost increases for energy, raw materials and freight cost
margins of European TiO2 industry eroded. Significant parts
of the industry are in very unhealthy conditions. In this view
Germany and Europe presently are not the most attractive
places to manufacture titanium dioxide.
?What will happen to the employees in the existing TiO2
activities of Rockwood and Kemira?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: Both organisations are very lean.
So the vast majority of the employees will be needed to
continue the operations. The intention of the joint venture is
to grow the business. For this both plants are needed. Both
the plants in Pori and in Duisburg are state of the art and
very well maintained.
?What are the strategic goals for the new enterprise?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: Both Kemira Pigments and
Sachtleben are focused on niche market segments and
have a good track record. The current situation in the market
is very challenging due to the weak USD. The combined
entity will surely be more competitive than the separate
companies and also the commercial risks are more limited.
For the integration process we have ambitious targets. The
integration process has to be finished within six months.
Then we will start to execute our jointly prepared business
plan and raise major part of the identified synergies within
24 months.
?What business development do you expect for the joint
venture?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: We have made a rather conservative
business model for the next four years. Based on this model
we expect stable growth and an increasing profitability for
the business.
?What are the effects to the global TiO2 business?
Wolf-Dieter Griebler: The joint venture represents only 2
% of the global TiO2 market. We do not expect significant
impact on the European and global market. This was not
the intention of the joint venture. It is formed to strengthen
the position in market segments where the partners already
hold a leading position. Such segments have limited market
volumes but growth rates exceed average predicted growth
for titanium dioxide.

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