COLOGNE: German chemicals group Lanxess unveiled more cutbacks on Thursday, shedding about 140 jobs in rubber production as it grapples with harsh competition and said finding a strategic partner would likely take until the second half of the year.
The company, the world's No.1 maker of synthetic rubber, said as early as May last year it would seek a strategic partner for its rubber division, shortly after Chief Executive Matthias Zachert had replaced Axel Heitmann at the helm.
Sources told Reuters last month Lanxess was in talks with Russia's NKNK and state-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co (Saudi Aramco) to sell a stake in its tyre rubber business.
"Lanxess is currently in talks with potential partners and will possibly report on these in the second half of 2015," it said on Thursday.
It added it expected stagnant core earnings or EBITDA in 2015, adjusted for special items, citing a challenging rubber market.
The company will stop production of EPDM rubber, used in tubes, sealants and transmission belt, at its Marl site in Germany, affecting 120 jobs. A further 20 jobs in the production of high-performance tyre rubbers will go in the United States.
New output capacity in EPDM, a synthetic rubber used in tubes, sealants and transmission belts, is coming to market driven by players such as Mitsui Chemicals and Sinopec.
Lanxess has itself contributed to the supply overhang, as it is bringing on stream the world's largest EPDM plant at its Changzhou site in China.
Lanxess unveiled plans in November to cut about 1,000 jobs, or 6 percent of its global workforce, in administration, services, marketing and sales, to counter overcapacity.
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