Page 161 - CW E-Magazine (4-2-2025)

News from Abroad

funds and other investors. Their argu- Mantle Ridge in 2016, this marked vestors were already voting, Air Pro-
ments, that new blood was needed on the second time he tangled with Air ducts laid out a more specific timeline
the board to push for a succession plan Products after having been a partner for Ghasemi’s departure. Air Products
for Mr. Ghasemi, persuade the com- at Pershing Square Capital Manage- said it will announce a new president
pany to allocate its capital differently ment when the hedge fund battled by the end of March and that this
and scale back on risky projects, the company more than a decade ago person will then become CEO within
resonated. and helped seat Mr. Ghasemi and three months of joining.
Mr. Monser on the board.
Shareholders elected Mr. Hilal, Mr. Mantle Ridge lined up Mr. Mene-
Andrew Evans, a former chief financial Unlike Mr. Bill Ackman, who runs zes, a former executive Vice Presi-
officer with experience in emissions Pershing Square, Mr. Hilal has avoided dent at Linde and senior executive
trading for utilities, and Mr. Dennis noisy proxy fights and largely stayed at Praxair, as a possible successor to
Reilley, an executive with knowledge out of the limelight. But investors ex- Mr. Ghasemi.
of the industrial gases industry. Proxy pect him to help shift gears at Air Pro-
advisory firm Institutional Shareholder ducts, and the stock price has climbed The company had repeatedly
Services had recommended these three more than 10% since Mantle Ridge’s warned that electing even one of Man-
candidates. stake was disclosed in early October. tle Ridge’s candidates would be disori-
enting and disruptive for the company’s
For Mr. Hilal, who founded By the time many institutional in- leadership and long-term strategy.

PRODUCTION HICCUP
Arkema to stop certain chlor-alkali operations
at French site hit by salt supply issues

French chemicals firm, Arkema, is
reorganising its production activities
at its Jarrie (France) site following the
cessation of its salt supply by Venco-
rex, a subsidiary of Thailand’s PTT-GC
(PTT Global Chemical).

The site had been impacted since
October 23, 2024, by the abrupt cessation
of its key raw material by Vencorex, which
has been placed in receivership by PTT-
GC. The procurement contract with Ven-
corex for the salt, meeting very particular
technical specifications, has been in place
since 1968. Arkema said the lack of an ties, sectors in which Arkema is one of 2025 and end of 2025. The alternative
alternative supply of salt, in quantity and of the world leaders. scheme, based on a salt that requires
a quality comparable to that of Vencorex, no additional purification to be used
was a “strong threat” to maintaining the This project, which will allow the directly by some of the existing units,
activity of the entire site. consolidation and development of Jar- has been studied in detail by Arkema.
rie’s major product lines, would result While this salt ensures the sustaina-
On 21 January 2025, Arkema pre- in the shutdown of the chlorine, soda, bility of the site’s hydrogen peroxide,
sented a proposal to its workers union methyl chloride and technical fluids chlorate and perchlorate units, it is not
to reorganise the activities of the Jarrie production activities and the loss of 154 compatible in terms of specifications,
site by refocusing on the hydrogen per- jobs out of a total of 344. The job cuts cost and quantity, with maintaining all
oxide, chlorate and perchlorate activi- are expected to take place between mid- of the activities of the Jarrie site.

Chemical Weekly February 4, 2025 161

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