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SABIC Purchases Clariant’s 50% Share in Scientific Design

Subject to regulatory approval, expected in mid-2022, the transaction will give SABIC full ownership of Scientific Design
Subject to regulatory approval, expected in mid-2022, the transaction will give SABIC full ownership of Scientific Design
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SABIC Purchases Clariant’s 50% Share in Scientific Design

Subject to regulatory approval, expected in mid-2022, the transaction will give SABIC full ownership of Scientific Design
Subject to regulatory approval, expected in mid-2022, the transaction will give SABIC full ownership of Scientific Design

Saudi Arabia’s SABIC has signed an agreement to purchase Clariant’s 50 percent stake in specialties company Scientific Design, currently a 50/50 joint-venture with SABIC.

Subject to regulatory approval, expected in mid-2022, the transaction will give SABIC full ownership of Scientific Design, which is a leading licensor of high-performance process technologies and catalysts producer.

The move is aimed at securing a greater share of the Specialties market. Last year, SABIC repositioned its Specialties division as a stand-alone strategic business unit to unlock organic and inorganic growth opportunities that are independent of feedstock dynamics.

SABIC Vice Chairman and CEO Yousef Al-Benyan said: “Catalysts are the foundation of our business. The acquisition of Scientific Design will strengthen our non-cyclical technology-oriented specialty business and move us closer to our long-term goal of becoming a global Specialties leader.”

“This is a growing global market and the Middle East region alone sources nearly $1.5 billion worth of catalysts per year. We recognize the opportunity to help meet increasing catalyst demands, increase security of supply and the level of innovation with the sector.”

With its key manufacturing plant and business headquartered in New Jersey, US, Scientific Design has operated as a joint venture for almost 20 years following SABIC’s 50 percent acquisition of the business in 2003. Employing more than 170 people globally, it is a leading licensor of high-performance process technologies and a developer of catalysts that are used in over 100 plants across more than 30 countries.

Scientific Design is a recognized leader and a strategic fit for SABIC that can strengthen and complement the high-performance capabilities of SABIC’s Specialties business. For almost 20 years, it has thrived as a SABIC joint venture securing a position at the forefront of innovation and sustainability in the chemical industry. By fully aligning mutual strengths SABIC can realize new growth potential.

SABIC’s Specialties business produces highly differentiated products which include specialty engineering thermoplastic resins and compounds, composites, thermosets & additives, and additive manufacturing solutions as well as catalyst and process technologies.

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Russia’s Inflation Reaches 9.5% This Year, Weekly Data Shows

Pedestrians walk to an underground passage at Manezhnaya Square decorated for Christmas and the New Year festivities with the Historical Museum and the Kremlin Wall in the background in Moscow, Russia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP)
Pedestrians walk to an underground passage at Manezhnaya Square decorated for Christmas and the New Year festivities with the Historical Museum and the Kremlin Wall in the background in Moscow, Russia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP)
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Russia’s Inflation Reaches 9.5% This Year, Weekly Data Shows

Pedestrians walk to an underground passage at Manezhnaya Square decorated for Christmas and the New Year festivities with the Historical Museum and the Kremlin Wall in the background in Moscow, Russia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP)
Pedestrians walk to an underground passage at Manezhnaya Square decorated for Christmas and the New Year festivities with the Historical Museum and the Kremlin Wall in the background in Moscow, Russia, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP)

Russia's inflation has reached 9.5% this year, according to new weekly data showing that the consumer price index rose by 0.33% in the week leading up to Dec. 23, the statistical agency Rosstat reported on Wednesday.

This data follows the central bank's unexpected decision last week to maintain its key interest rate at 21%. The regulator said recent tightening has created conditions conducive to reducing inflation towards its target of 4%.

The agency indicated that seasonally volatile prices for fruit and vegetables contributed significantly to the overall increase, with cucumber prices rising by 8.3% and tomato prices by 1.9% in just one week.

Among less seasonally sensitive foods, the price of eggs increased by 1.7%, and frozen fish by 1.4%. The central bank had initially estimated this year's inflation at a maximum of 8.5%.

The central bank's monetary policy department's head Andrei Gangan told the Interfax news agency on Dec. 24 that full-year inflation will be between 9.6% and 9.8%.

Inflationary expectations among households for the coming year also reached 13.9% in December, the highest level since the beginning of the year.

In a report on its inflationary expectations survey, the central bank said respondents were most concerned about rising prices for milk, dairy products, eggs, meat, and fish.

It also said respondents have begun to notice increases in the prices of home appliances and electronic devices.