Westlake Chemical buys specialty PVC producer Vinnolit

Resin supplier Westlake Chemical Corporation has acquired German-based specialty PVC maker Vinnolit Holdings GmbH and its subsidiary companies for 490 million euros (Cdn$724 million).

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2014, subject to standard closing conditions.

Vinnolit was owned by Advent International, a private equity firm.

Headquartered near Munich in Ismaning, Germany, Vinnolit has six production facilities located in Gendorf, Burghausen, Cologne, Knapsack and Schkopau in Germany and Hillhouse in the United Kingdom. These operations have a combined annual capacity of 780 thousand metric tons of PVC. Vinnolit’s products are suitable for a wide range of industrial and building product applications including automotive sealants, cable sheathing, flooring, medical applications, pipes, rigid film, technical coatings, wall covering, and window profiles. 

The company generated about 917 million euros of revenue in 2013 and employs approximately 1,400 employees.

“The acquisition of Vinnolit is an excellent strategic fit for Westlake. It will allow us to expand our chlorvinyl business globally and adds important specialty PVC products and technology to our existing portfolio,” said Albert Chao, Westlake’s president and CEO, in a statement. 

Westlake is an international manufacturer and supplier of petrochemicals, polymers and building products with headquarters in Houston, Tex.  The company’s range of products includes ethylene, polyethylene, styrene, propylene, caustic, VCM, PVC resin, and PVC building products including pipe and specialty components, windows, and fence.