Mark Thomas 2023-07-06 23:46:25
Ineos Group Ltd. has agreed to buy TotalEnergies SE’s stakes in several 50/50 joint ventures (JVs) that the companies operate at Lavéra, France, with assets including a 720,000 metric tons per year steam cracker plus polypropylene (PP) and aromatics units.
The value of the transaction has not been disclosed, with completion expected near the end of 2023, subject to consultation and regulatory approval, Ineos said.
The deal includes TotalEnergies’ entire stake in the Naphtachimie SA, Appryl SNC, Gexaro and 3TC JVs as well as related pipelines. Naphtachimie’s cracker and refinery is one of the largest in Europe. The cracker produces ethylene, propylene, butadiene, butenes and pyrolysis gasoline for external customers and for on-site use by Ineos, Appryl, Kem One SAS, Oxochimie SAS and Gexaro, Ineos said.
The Appryl JV operates a PP plant at Lavéra with a nameplate capacity of 300,000 metric tons per year, and the Gexaro aromatics JV has a production capacity of 270,000 metric tons per year. The 3TC JV operates naphtha storage facilities at the site, supplying the cracker.
Ineos said the deal would fully integrate the Naphtachimie, Gexaro and Appryl petrochemical businesses, assets and infrastructure into its Olefins & Polymers (O&P) South business at Lavéra. Gexaro is located at the refinery site and will continue to be operated by the Petroineos refining business, Ineos said. Gexaro produces benzene and gasoline at the Petroineos refinery.
Acquiring TotalEnergies’ stake will enhance Ineos’s competitiveness, said Xavi Cros, CEO of Ineos O&P South. Ineos will continue to invest in the businesses, including reducing CO2 emissions to meet the company’s net-zero commitment by 2050, he said.
The pipeline assets included in the deal are the southern sections of TotalEnergies’ ethylene pipeline network running from Lavéra to the Lyon, France, region.
The agreements with Ineos will realign the companies’ respective stakes in their production assets and logistics infrastructure “to better reflect the balance between their production and internal use of ethylene in eastern France,” said TotalEnergies.
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