Stepan sells two sites

Surfactants specialist Stepan has agreed to sell its manufacturing assets in Lake Providence, Louisiana, to an unnamed buyer in a deal expected to close before the end of the year. This followed shortly on the completion of the sale of its subsidiary Stepan Philippines Quaternaries, including assets in Bauan, Batangas, Philippines to Masurf and a tolling agreement for continued service to Southeast Asian customers. 

Terms were not disclosed in either case. The company said that the sales reflect its “ongoing efforts to optimise its manufacturing footprint and focus on core growth opportunities”. Its share price had fallen by 27.66% from the start of the year to the date of the announcement of the US sale and Q3 sales came in slightly below projections.

Subsequently Stepan Agricultural Solutions established a new agriculture laboratory at the Parque Tecnológico de Piracicaba, Brazil, which it described as one of the world’s largest agricultural innovation hubs. This, the company said, will be part of its global network of agricultural laboratories and will support its clients and internal teams alike by:

• Developing formulations for chemical and biological crop protection products, adjuvants and specialty fertilisers
• Performance testing of product concepts to ensure established efficacy and safety parameters are met
• Collaborating with cross-functional teams to drive new product development and vet product concepts