Additives supplier buys chemical company

Albemarle Corp. has signed an agreement to purchase Martinswerk GmbH, a specialty chemicals company, for US$44 million. The purchase will include Martinswerk’s facilities and headquarters in Bergheim, Germany, and the company’s 50 percent stake in Magnifin Magnesia Produckte GmbH, which has manufacturing facilities in Austria. In 2000, Martinswerk had sales of about US$100 million; the majority coming from mineral-based flame retardants.