Kemira, Wilmar Form JV to Produce AKD Wax in China
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Kemira is a global manufacturer of AKD, a sizing agent that provides hydrophobicity and/or water resistance to paper and paperboard. Sufficient hydrophobicity is important for packaging materials, and improves paper and board runnability in a coating process at the same time. Water resistance also improves printability and dimension stability of the final product during the converting process.
"Kemira is a leading producer of synthetic sizes for the paper and packaging board industry. The JV with Wilmar is an important step in the implementation of Kemira's paper strategy," said Petri Helsky, president of Kemira's Paper segment. "Through the JV, we will strengthen our position in the sizing market in Asia Pacific and, at the same time, demonstrate our strategic commitment to the paper industry. The JV will also secure the supply of key raw materials needed in the manufacturing process in China due to the backwards integration into the fatty acid chlorination technology", said Joe Chan, president, APAC region.
Wilmar is a global producer of stearic acid, which is the key raw material for AKD production. "The JV, which will be an expansion down the oleochemicals value chain for Wilmar, will capitalize on Wilmar's advantage in sourcing of raw materials as well as on cost efficiencies from its integrated manufacturing operations. The JV will also enhance Wilmar's footprint in the Asia Pacific region", said Dave, Cui Xinyu, head of Wilmar Oleochemicals, China.
