Clariant significantly expanding in North America 

August 30, 2015 |

In San Francisco, Clariant said at the Clariant Roundtable event that it is significantly expanding its North American workforce to capture opportunities in catalysis, oil & mining services and biotechnology. Clarinet is the developer of the sunliquid cellulosic ethanol process.

The commercial relevance of the North American region in general was highlighted by Hariolf Kottmann, CEO of Clariant. He stated: ”For Clariant North America is an important growth market. The U.S. provides the single biggest revenue contribution.”

Currently Clariant delivers sales of around USD 1.0 billion in North America with approximate 1,800 employees, and has been experiencing year-on-year growth of around 4% in the region since 2011. Growth in the company Catalysts business has been even stronger, at 5% per year, while the Oil & Mining Services (OMS) business has shown double digit growth per annum. Based on the strength of these businesses, Clariant sales in the first half of 2015 in North America were up by 5%. Kottmann envisions continued growth in North America, accelerated by investments in this region.

Ken Golder, Head of the region North America, described the opportunities this region offers Clariant to contribute to its growth. As the largest specialty chemicals market in the world, we benefit from favorable pricing and availability of energy and feedstocks, and the industry in general is being revitalized as a consequence of the energy sector expansion,” Golder said. The projected GDP growth of 2.8 % for the U.S. is among the highest of any advanced nation. Economic indicators and forecasts confirm that this strong growth will continue.

Clariant is therefore investing heavily in North America. Examples are the new Polypropylene Catalyst Plant in Louisville with an investment of around USD 100 million and the Houdry Catalysts Expansion with an investment of around $20 million.

Providing details on Clariant’s Catalysis business, Stefan Heuser, head of BU Catalysts, highlighted the current annual growth rate of this business, which is close to 7%. ”Approximately 90% of all chemical products are manufactured with the help of catalysts,” he said. “As chemical production volumes are forecasted to grow significantly, the existing technologies will double energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. More efficient innovative catalysts will allow chemical production to grow sustainably.”

Clariant is also investing heavily in catalysts R&D, with a spend of more than 7% of sales. To develop the most efficient solutions, Clariant is leveraging its position as an independent catalyst supplier to collaborate closely with leading process licensors as well as with customers and academic partners.

More on Clariant biotechnology, here.

Category: Fuels

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