Chemical producer LyondellBasell is negotiating with German industrial investment group Aequita for the sale of four of its European olefins production sites, the company said. Shifting market dynamics, including a reliance on naphtha feedstocks and reduced availability of Russian imports, have led to higher input costs and affected regional competitiveness.
The company announced in May last year that it would review the viability of its European assets as part of an initiative to improve growth, promote resource circularity and lower its carbon footprint. The sites on offer are located in France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom.
The four sites were part of a group of six that included its Brindisi polypropylene plant, which remains under review, and its Maasvlakte propylene oxide-styrene monomer plant in the Netherlands, which was closed in March, according to Argus.
LyondellBasell, a global chemical producer headquartered in Houston with incorporation in the Netherlands, employs 20,000 people. It is known for manufacturing ethylene, propylene, polyethylene, polypropylene and oxyfuels, and for its licensing of polyolefin technologies.
Munich-based Aequita specializes in bringing medium-sized industrial companies back to profitability.