Lanxess acquired Itibanyl Produtos Especiais Ltda., a leading Brazilian manufacturer of biocides, including some used in metalworking fluids and lubricants. The purchase price was not disclosed for the deal, which was announced Dec. 2.
The transaction is subject to approval of antitrust authorities, and the deal is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2020.
Ipel is a family-run company with headquarters in Jarinu and around 100 employees. The transaction covers a production and laboratory facilities as well as access to key intermediate products.
Ipel has a wide ranging portfolio for metalworking fluids and lubricants preservation, including products free of low volatile organic compound and formaldehydes, the company’s website states. According to the biocide maker, formulas are compatible for use in concentrated oil or emulsified fluid for shock treatment or maintenance treatment.
The company generates the majority of its sales with biocides and specialty chemicals for the paint and coating industry. Its products portfolio also includes preservatives and fungicides for process control in water treatment as well as active ingredients for disinfection and cleaning agents.
The Brazilian company claims to be the only biocide manufacturer in South America that synthesizes isothiazolines, the main family of active biocide formulation, which gives it raw material autonomy and competitive prices.
It is present in several countries, with distributors and local stocks around the world. That includes locations in South and Central America, Africa, Europe and Asia, according to its website.
Cologne, Germany-based Lanxess said that with the acquisition, its Material Protection Products business unit is reinforcing its global presence and is now in a position to serve its South American customers from a local production facility. The business unit also has production facilities in Europe, the United States and Asia.
“With Ipel’s business, we are expanding our global production network and strengthening our position in South America,” Oliver Kretschik, head of the biocides business line in the Material Protection Products business unit, said in a news release. “Ipel also has a strong customer network that will soon be able to benefit from our combined product portfolio and regulatory expertise.”
The Lanxess Material Protection Products business unit employs about 540 people and has production sites in Krefeld-Uerdingen and Dormagen, Germany; Sudbury, Great Britain; Pittsburgh and Memphis in the U.S.; Jhagadia, India; Changzhou, China; and Singapore.