Dow Chemical said it will reconfigure and reduce its equity base in the MEGlobal and Greater Equate joint ventures, including Kuwait Olefins Company (TKOC) and Kuwait Styrene Company (TKSC).
This reduction, Dow said, will be done through a divestment of a portion of the Company’s interests in these well-established ventures and expects these transactions to be completed by mid-2015.
While Dow will retain a substantial stake in these long-term partnerships, this effort will open opportunities for new investment in these successful and growing enterprises.
“Dow remains committed to maximizing the overall value of both MEGlobal and the Greater Equate joint ventures to further enhance their already demonstrated strong value and performance”, the US based chemicals producer said.
Established in July 2004, MEGlobal a JV between Dow and Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC) of Kuwait; manufactures monoethylene glycol (MEG) and diethylene glycol (EG).
MEGlobal currently markets over 2.5 million metric tons of EG per year globally, which is used as a raw material in the manufacture of polyester fibers, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resins, etc.
Established in 1995, Equate produces more than 5 million tons annually of high-quality petrochemical products, including polyethylene, ethylene, and EG.
Formed in 2004, The Kuwait Olefins Company (TKOC) is an international joint venture among Dow, Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), Boubyan Petrochemical Company (BPC) and Qurain Petrochemical Industries Company (QPIC).
Equate is the single operator of Greater Equate, which includes TKOC, TKSC, and Kuwait Paraxylene Production Company (KPPC) under one fully integrated operational umbrella at Kuwait’s Shuaiba Industrial Area.
“We have been reviewing every aspect of our joint venture portfolio, with the primary objective of identifying opportunities to deliver further shareholder value,” said Andrew Liveris, Dow’s CEO.
“As a result of that analysis, we plan to reduce our equity position in MEGlobal and Equate, a strategic action, which allows us to redeploy capital to more strategic purposes,” he added.
In 2013, Dow had annual sales of more than $57 billion and employed approximately 53,000 people worldwide and manufactures it’s around 6,000 products at 201 sites across 36 countries. (AR)
