Samsung General Chemical Co. and France's Atofina sign joint venture deal
South Korea's Samsung General Chemical Co. said Wednesday it signed a final agreement with French chemical company Atofina to launch a $1.55 billion joint venture in South Korea.
The 50-50 joint venture - which will make petrochemical products such as ethylene, polyolefins and styrene monomer - is to begin operations in the third quarter, said Samsung in a statement.
"The joint venture will maximize the synergies by combining Samsung General Chemical's expertise in production technology and Atofina's advanced marketing and distribution network and capabilities," the Korean company said.
Samsung will contribute its assets, facilities and labor force to the new joint venture, while Atofina provides its existing network around the world, including in the U.S. and Europe.
"Atofina will benefit from the joint venture by directly accessing the Asian petrochemicals market, particularly China, the world's fastest growing petrochemical market...and Samsung General Chemical will be able to strengthen its marketing capabilities," said Samsung.
Unlisted Samsung General Chemicals, which is an affiliate of South Korean conglomerate Samsung Group, has an annual production capacity of 650,000 tons of ethylene and 670,000 tons of polyolefins.
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