Westlake Chemical Plans to Complete the Acquisition of Axiall Corp.

United States: Westlake Chemical, a Texas based petrochemicals, polymers and building products manufacturer, has planned to completely acquire Axiall Corporation, an Atlanta based manufacturer and international marketer of integrated chlorovinyls and vinyl-based building and home improvement products. The acquisition would end by August 2016. The Westlake deals into various products such as ethylene, polyethylene, styrene, propylene, caustic, VCM, PVC suspension, specialty resins and PVC building products. Westlake Chemical would acquire the remaining shares of Axiall Corp. for USD33 per share, which would indicate towards a total enterprise value around USD3.8 billion. The new entity would become the leading producer of chlor-alkali and PVC in North America. Earlier.

TechSci Research depicts that the acquisition of Axiall Corp. by Westlake chemical would lead to expansion on product portfolio of Westlake Chemical with which the company will be able to target a larger base of potential customers. Moreover, the widespread supply and distribution of the Westlake chemical would lead to augmenting sales of PVC in North America and globally.

According to the recent report published by TechSci Research “Saudi Arabia PVC Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2020”, the PVC market in Saudi Arabia is anticipated to cross USD892 million by 2020. Central and Western regions account for over two-thirds of the country’s PVC demand and this trend is expected to continue over the next five years. Saudi Arabia PVC market is dominated by one major conglomerate, SABIC (operates with its affiliate Petrokemya), which held the majority market share in 2014. Other players operating in the country’s PVC market include Arabian Plastic Compounds Co. Ltd. (APC), Interplast Co. Ltd., ALRajhi Industrial Group, TIB Plastic Industries, Middle East Specialized Cables Co (MESC), Bahra Cables Company, Al Thinayyan Holding Group and Intergulf–Empol.