SK Global Chemical has closed the acquisition deal of the Dow’s PVDC (polyvinylidene chloride).*

A subsidiary of SK Innovation, SK Global Chemical had signed the acquisition agreement with the Dow on October 11, 2017. After two months of acquisition processes, SK Global Chemical now has complete ownership of the former Dow businesses, including Dow’s PVDC brand SARAN™, production facilities in Michigan, USA, production technologies, and intellectual property.

This acquisition is the second high-profile M&A completed by SK Global Chemical this year, creating a firm basis for its ascent to being a major player in the global high-value packaging material industry.
In early September of 2017, SK Global Chemical had completed its acquisition of Dow’s EAA (ethylene acrylic acid) business, a type of adhesive copolymer.

With the acquisition of the PVDC business, SK Global Chemical now has the basic core materials necessary for the production of multilayer packaging film, from polyethylene, Nexlene, EAA, and PVDC. This move is a part of SK Global Chemical’s greater plan to acquire additional core products in other areas, thereby securing its ascent to the forefront of the global packaging material industry.

Along with automotive, packaging had been the focus of SK Global Chemical last year, having been designated as the next-generation growth focus area of the company in the early parts of 2017. The acquisition of the PVDC is the final triumph in its M&A ventures within the global chemical market, and as such, it is expected to a further drive toward other upcoming business portfolios.

CEO Hyung-kun Kim of SK Global Chemical commented: “We will focus our capabilities in acquiring product lines and technologies pertaining to our next-generation growth focus area, automotive materials, and high-value packaging materials” and “we will continue to acquire core materials and technology through R&D, M&A, and joint ventures to secure our bid toward becoming a top global player in the field.”

SK Innovation had announced its plan to focus its business on two areas of automotive materials and packaging, which are widely hailed as promising fields of growth in the chemical industry, and elevate its subsidiary, SK Global Chemical, to become a global Top 10 chemical company by 2024 through sustained investments.
With this, SK Innovation underwent a restructuring of its business organization in August of last year, with the goals of strengthening the focus toward automotive and packaging materials and dividing the general marketing departments into two groups: automotive and packaging divisions.