 |
 |
||||||
[May 2004]
CeramTec and Chemetall Form Part of Sale to US Specialty Chemical Company
Rockwood Specialties Group Inc (Princeton, NJ, USA) has announced that it will acquire four businesses of Dynamit Nobel (Troisdorf, Germany) to form a new specialty chemicals group with a combined revenue of US$2.5 billion (based on 2003 revenues). The four companies are CeramTec AG, Chemetall GmbH, Sachtleben Chemie GmbH and DNES Custom Synthesis.
CeramTec is a market leader in advanced ceramics with leading positions in medical implants (ceramic hip joint components for the European and US markets), ceramic high speed cutting tools and piezoelectric components. 2003 sales of around US$285 million were split 70% Europe, 15% USA and 15% Asia.
Chemetall is the global leader in specialty chemicals based on lithium and other special metals and is also a leading supplier of chemicals and services for metal surface treatment. 2003 sales of approximately US$660 million were split between surface treatment (51%) and lithium and other special metals (49%) and were split 59% Europe, 29% USA and 12% Asia.
Sachtleben Chemie is the global market leader in titanium dioxide for synthetic fibre applications and barium and zinc-based white pigments, with 2003 sales of around US$385 million. DNES Custom Synthesis provides the global pharmaceutical industry with custom synthesis of advanced intermediates and active pharmaceutical ingredients. 2003 sales were around US$280 million.
This transaction will create one of the world's largest specialty chemical companies, with Europe representing 53% of combined sales and the USA contributing 34%.
Rockwood, which reported sales of US$800 million in 2003, is a leading global specialty chemicals and advanced materials company. It focuses on niche markets in inorganic pigments, wood surface treatment, clay additives, water treatment chemicals, specialty compounds, electronic chemicals and advanced materials. It currently operates 40 facilities in North America, Europe and Asia with a workforce of 2,500.
ENDS