Author: William Foreman
HOUSTON – Orion S.A. (NYSE: OEC), a global specialty chemicals company, on Tuesday broke ground on a plant in Texas that will be the only facility in the U.S. producing acetylene-based conductive additives for lithium-ion batteries and other applications vital for the global shift to electrification.
The site in the city of La Porte, southeast of Houston, will create many high-skilled jobs – both in construction and technical fields – and bring innovative technology to the American economy. The battery additives produced by Orion’s plant will be super clean, with only one-tenth of the carbon footprint of other commonly used materials.
“Orion is already the sole producer of acetylene-based conductive additives in Europe,” Orion CEO Corning Painter said at the groundbreaking ceremony. “Our plant in La Porte will be a pivotal step toward strengthening the regional supply of conductive additives in the rapidly growing U.S. battery market.”
Every battery requires conductive additives. They enable a more efficient flow of electricity and extend the lifetime of lithium-ion batteries – the most valuable components of electric vehicles. The material also plays an essential role in high-voltage cables used for wind and solar farms.
The additives produced at the La Porte plant will be made from acetylene, a colorless gas that Orion’s production process turns into powder with exceptional purity demanded by leading battery manufacturers. The acetylene will be supplied by a neighboring site owned by Equistar Chemicals LP, a subsidiary of LyondellBasell.
At Tuesday’s groundbreaking ceremony, Kim Foley, LyondellBasell executive vice president of Global Olefins and Polyolefins, Refining and Supply Chain, said “At LYB, we see electrification as a crucial part of our plan to reduce carbon emissions across our industries. By supporting the production of key battery components, we’re contributing to solutions for a better tomorrow.”
Orion’s plant in La Porte is similar to one the company has in the city of Berre-l’Étang in southern France. The facility also uses acetylene from LyondellBasell.
With the LaPorte project, key equipment procurement and off-site fabrication are already at an advanced stage. Field construction activities are ramping up, with the facility start-up expected in the second quarter of 2025.
About Orion S.A.
Orion S.A. (NYSE: OEC) is a leading global supplier of carbon black, a solid form of carbon produced as powder or pellets. The material is made to customers’ exacting specifications for tires, coatings, ink, batteries, plastics and numerous other specialty, high-performance applications. Carbon black is used to tint, colorize, provide reinforcement, conduct electricity, increase durability and add UV protection. Orion has four innovation centers and produces carbon black at 15 plants worldwide, offering the most diverse variety of production processes in the industry. The company’s corporate lineage goes back more than 160 years to Germany, where it operates the world’s longest-running carbon black plant. Orion is a leading innovator,
applying a deep understanding of customers’ needs to deliver sustainable solutions. For more information, please visit orioncarbons.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement. New risk factors and uncertainties emerge from time to time and it is not possible to predict all risk factors and uncertainties, nor can we assess the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information, other than as required by applicable law.
Contacts:
William Foreman
Orion S.A.
Director of Corporate Communications and Government Affairs
william.foreman@orioncarbons.com
+1 281-889-7833
Wendy Wilson
Orion S.A.
Head of Investor Relations
wendy.wilson@orioncarbons.com
+1 281-974-0155
HOUSTON – Orion S.A. (NYSE: OEC), a global specialty chemicals company, announced today it has maintained a Gold medal rating from EcoVadis and ranks among the top 2% of the companies assessed by the organization in a wide range of sustainability areas.
Orion improved its score from the previous year, moving up from 77% to 78% by making significant gains in the areas of sustainable procurement and ethics, according to EcoVadis, one of the world’s largest providers of business sustainability ratings.
“The annual progress Orion is making in the EcoVadis assessments is just another example of how committed we are to being a trusted partner for all our stakeholders and becoming an even more sustainable company,” Orion CEO Corning Painter said.
Over the past year, Orion has achieved several sustainability milestones. The most notable achievements include the completion of a series of four projects, with a total cost of more than $300 million, that involved installing technology that is substantially reducing emissions at Orion’s U.S. plants.
The company also continues to be a leader in developing circular products and recently received €6.4 million in funding from the German government and European Union to further develop technology to improve the production of carbon black using circular feedstocks.
About Orion Engineered Carbons
Orion S.A. (NYSE: OEC) is a leading global supplier of carbon black, a solid form of carbon produced as powder or pellets. The material is made to customers’ exacting specifications for tires, coatings, ink, batteries, plastics and numerous other specialty, high-performance applications. Carbon black is used to tint, colorize, provide reinforcement, conduct electricity, increase durability and add UV protection. Orion has innovation centers on three continents and 15 plants worldwide, offering the most diverse variety of production processes in the industry. The company’s corporate lineage goes back more than 160 years to Germany, where it operates the world’s longest-running carbon black plant. Orion is a leading innovator, applying a deep understanding of customers’ needs to deliver sustainable solutions. For more information, please visit orioncarbons.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement. New risk factors and uncertainties emerge from time to time and it is not possible to predict all risk factors and uncertainties, nor can we assess the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information, other than as required by applicable law.
Contacts:
William Foreman
Director of Corporate Communications and
Government Affairs
Orion Engineered Carbons
Direct: +1 832-445-3305
Mobile: +1 281-889-7833
william.foreman@orioncarbons.com
Wendy Wilson
Head of Investor Relations
Orion Engineered Carbons
Direct: +1 281-974-0155
HOUSTON – Orion S.A. (NYSE: OEC), a global specialty chemicals producer, announced today it has completed upgrading its air emissions control technology at all four of its U.S. carbon black plants – the biggest sustainability-related initiative in the company’s history.
The company recently finished its final air emissions project at its plant in Belpre, Ohio. Previously, the company upgraded its Borger, Texas; Ivanhoe, Louisiana; and Orange, Texas, facilities.
The upgrades were part of an initiative from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that applied to all carbon black producers in America. The projects were especially challenging for Orion because it has more carbon black plants in the U.S. than any other company. Despite suffering from contractor issues, COVID-19 and supply-chain disruptions, Orion finished its projects ahead of some of its competitors.
“Our difficult journey to make our facilities run cleaner is now completed. Looking forward, we are entering an exciting new era as we focus more on investing in profitable growth, reducing debt and returning value to shareholders,” Orion CEO Corning Painter said.
“Central to our growth strategy, Orion will continue to invest in sustainability-linked projects,” Painter added. “This will include producing conductive materials for lithium-ion batteries and developing products for the circular economy.”
With a slower recovery in end markets and downtime as a result of Orion’s final EPA project, the company expects 2023 results to land at the lower end of its Adjusted EBITDA guidance range of $330 million to $340 million. While demand is recovering, it is building slower than expected in many markets.
“We are projecting our fourth year in a row of earnings growth in 2024 and expect the rate to be similar to 2023, which was a mid-single digit EBITDA increase,” Painter said.
About Orion S.A.
Orion S.A. (NYSE: OEC) is a leading global supplier of carbon black, a solid form of carbon produced as powder or pellets. The material is made to customers’ exacting specifications for tires, coatings, ink, batteries, plastics and numerous other specialty, high-performance applications. Carbon black is used to tint, colorize, provide reinforcement, conduct electricity, increase durability and add UV protection. Orion has four innovation centers and produces carbon black at 15 plants worldwide, offering the most diverse variety of production processes in the industry. The company’s corporate lineage goes back more than 160 years to Germany, where it operates the world’s longest-running carbon black plant. Orion is a leading innovator, applying a deep understanding of customers’ needs to deliver sustainable solutions. For more information, please visit orioncarbons.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement. New risk factors and uncertainties emerge from time to time and it is not possible to predict all risk factors and uncertainties, nor can we assess the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information, other than as required by applicable law.
Contacts:
William Foreman
Orion S.A.
Director of Corporate Communications and Government Affairs
william.foreman@orioncarbons.com
Direct: +1 832-445-3305
Wendy Wilson
Orion S.A.
Head of Investor Relations
+1 281-974-0155
