BASF Corporation announces Paper Chemicals restructuring

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BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, announced Wednesday that it is reorganizing its Paper Chemicals division, merging its units into two other divisions.The chemical company said it is changing the organization of the business to better serve the paper industry. As of Jan. 1, the division will be dissolved, with its Switzerland headquarters closed and 50 jobs lost globally, BASF said in a news release.

The Paper Chemicals business units will be divided among other divisions in the Performance Products business segment, BASF said. After the closure of the division, two businesses, wet-end chemicals and kaolin, will be integrated into the Performance Chemicals division as its new Paper Chemicals unit. In addition, the paper dispersions business and Center for Sustainable Paper Packaging will be integrated into the Dispersions & Pigments division. Finally, BASF is evaluating what to do with its paper hydrous kaolin business.

“Integrating the paper chemicals business along existing value chains will allow BASF to optimally steer plant capacity and leverage the advantages of the BASF ‘Verbund,’” Michael Heinz, the executive director of parent BASF SE who is responsible for the Performance Products business segment. “This will strengthen our businesses and further increase the competitiveness of our Performance Products segment.”

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