Sunoco to sell Marcus Hook facility including PP unit to Braskem

08-Feb-10

Sunoco is selling its Marcus Hook subsidiary, Sunoco Chemicals Inc along with its polypropylene unit for US$350 mln to Braskem. Located adjacent to Sunoco refinery, the unit is operational. The sale includes units in manufacturing facilities in La Porte, Texas, and Neal, W.Va. The sale is expected to be complete by March 31, subject to federal approval. Though the price has not been disclosed, the company has procured a good price. A second area plastics unit, a phenol unit in Philadelphia, was on the market but not sold, as Sunoco considers offer. The move is part of Sunoco's efforts to shed non-core assets, improve returns on invested capital and funnel sale proceeds to more strategic parts of the business. The three units together represent about 13% of installed U.S. polypropylene production capacity.