Regulatory News:

Arkema (Paris:AKE) announces the start-up of a new world-scale industrial adhesives plant in Japan. Those new capacities will enable Bostik to serve its Japanese customers in the continuously growing markets of diapers, hygiene, packaging, labelling, transportation and electronics. This investment is in line with Bostik’s growth and geographical expansion strategy.

Bostik, the Adhesive Solutions segment of Arkema, continues the development of its industrial adhesives business and announces the start-up of a new plant in Nara, Japan, within the Bostik-Nitta JV, 80% owned by the Group.

This new facility includes several production lines dedicated, on the one hand, to adhesives for the non-woven industry (diapers and hygiene) and, on the other hand, to the industrial markets of packaging, labelling, transportation and electronics. It will enable Bostik to support the strong growth of its customers in the disposable hygiene sector in Japan and to expand the manufacturing of certain industrial adhesives ranges in Asia.

This investment represents a new step in the geographical strengthening of Bostik, remaining close to its customers, and confirms its commitment to developing innovative and sustainable products at the highest level of quality and performance.

“We are very pleased with the successful start-up of this new plant, the first one in Japan for Bostik. The geographical expansion of our production capacity to support the growth of our customers is a core part of our strategy to become a leading global player” stated Vincent Legros, Executive Vice President, Bostik.

”This local presence combined with our global expertise in adhesives will allow us to become more responsive and improve customer intimacy in the Asian region, thereby meeting their specific needs in some of the most demanding sectors in terms of both quality and innovation” said Motoki Ohno, Head of Bostik-Nitta JV.

This investment is in line with the Arkema’s roadmap to become a pure Specialty Materials player by 2024, centered around Adhesive Solutions, Advanced Materials, and Coating Solutions.

Building on its unique set of expertise in materials science, Arkema offers a portfolio of first-class technologies to address ever-growing demand for new and sustainable materials. With the ambition to become in 2024 a pure player in Specialty Materials, the Group is structured into 3 complementary, resilient and highly innovative segments dedicated to Specialty Materials -Adhesive solutions, Advanced Materials, and Coating Solutions- accounting for some 80% of Group sales, and a well-positioned and competitive Intermediates segment. Arkema offers cutting-edge technological solutions to meet the challenges of, among other things, new energies, access to water, recycling, urbanization and mobility, and fosters a permanent dialogue with all its stakeholders. The Group reported sales of €8.7 billion in 2019, and operates in some 55 countries with 20,500 employees worldwide. www.arkema.com