Global Amines acquires Clariant’s quats and esterquats business at US$113M

31 Aug 2022 --- Global Amines Company, a 50:50 joint venture of Clariant and Wilmar, has signed an agreement to acquire the global quats and esterquats business from Clariant, expected to close in the first half of 2023.

“The quats and esterquats business is an ideal fit for Global Amines Company as it complements our product portfolio and our ability to offer customers the best and most competitive solutions from a complete range of amines, quats, amines derivatives and betaines,” says Ernesto Horikoshi, group general manager of Global Amines Company.

“The acquisition plays to the joint venture’s strategic strengths by building on Clariant’s long-standing experience in specialties chemicals and Wilmar’s position as Asia’s leading agribusiness and its global oleochemicals business.”

The purchase price of US$113 million is subject to standard closing conditions.

Quats and esterquats are used in personal care items such as creams, fabric softeners and cleansing gels, among others. Production and supply
Clariant’s current Quats and Esterquats business includes products sold under the Praepagen and Genamin trademarks and has a presence in the home and personal care market.

Quats are well-known antiseptics and have a long history of use in topical products for personal care such as creams, facial scrubs and cleansing gels.

Esterquats, which are quaternary ammonium compounds having two long (C(16)-C(18)) fatty acid chains with 2 weak ester linkages, represent a new generation of fabric softening agents.

With production assets located in Germany, Brazil and Indonesia, the business is a supplier of quats with proprietary technology. The products are used in a broad range of products, including fabric softeners and hair conditioners.

Recent launches
Earlier in June, Clariant introduced naturally sourced and biodegradable Plantasens OP 95 – a micro-plastic-free alternative to traditional acrylate opacifiers – which are considered microplastics and will be banned under the EU/EEA legislative proposal taking effect in 2022.

The launch came as UN secretary-general António Guterres declared an “ocean emergency,” urging scientific solutions to treat the plastic crisis.

The company detailed that the ingredient has a 95% renewable carbon index and is a readily-biodegradable alternative to microplastic opacifiers. Additionally, it is sulfate-free and not harmful to aquatic life.

The vegan Plantasens OP 95 enables personal care formulators to minimize the impact of shampoos, conditioners, handwashes and other rinse-off shower and bath products on marine and river life.

In an attempt to tackle the ecologically harmful plastic waste produced by the industry, Clariant, Siegwerk, Borealis and Beiersdorf joined forces in June, to form the Design4Circularity initiative, creating recyclable consumer packaging based on 100% retrieved plastic packaging waste for cosmetics applications.

“Achieving circularity needs a complete shift in designing product packaging and packaging raw materials, considering sortability, recycling and packaging end-of-life,” Richard Haldimann, chief technology and sustainability officer at Clariant, previously stated.

Edited by Radhika Sikaria