Private equity firm TPG Opportunities Partners is acquiring a minority stake in PET maker M&G Chemicals’s unit M&G Chemicals SA (including its global PET resin business) for US$300 million. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Marco Ghisolfi, CEO of M&G Chemicals, said, “This capital infusion will not only enable us to grow and solidify our position as a leader in the global PET market, but will also allow us to take advantage of market opportunities as they arise. M&G Chemicals remains committed to investing in the development of innovative PET products that serve the needs of our customers, both today and in the future.”

M&G Chemicals has several large expansion projects underway, including construction of the world’s largest integrated PTA/PET facility in Corpus Christi, Texas, US, as well as a project in Fuyang City, China, to develop and industrialise a green PET supply chain of raw materials from renewable sources.

M&G, Italy's second-biggest chemicals group after oil major Eni, has operations in the US, Brazil, Mexico, China and India. It has a nominal capacity with 1,600 ktonnes/year, with nearly 1.4 million tonnes/year of installed capacity. The company employs more than 900 employees in 14 locations in six countries around the world. In 2013 M&G Chemicals posted an annual revenue of €1,675 million.

Founded by the Ghisolfi family in 1953, its plants in Suape, Brazil and Altamira, Mexico are the two largest single lines and most efficient in the world (measured in terms of operating costs per metric tonne), and are based on proprietary technology. Through its engineering division Chemtex, M&G Chemicals provides technological development, research and engineering services for the construction of plants for customers in the polyester chain (including PET, polyester fibre and PTA production) and LNG industries. These activities are also aimed at enabling the production of PET resin made entirely from renewable sources. M&G Chemicals is an affiliated entity with the Mossi Ghisolfi Group.