ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Solutia Inc., which makes specialty chemicals and products, says low-cost competition has forced it to discontinue manufacturing at a plant in Germany, and a Belgian company will acquire assets to assume production.
Solutia, based in St. Louis, said Tuesday it will discontinue manufacturing at the plant in Cologne "as soon as practical."
Taminco N.V. will acquire some assets and contracts to continue producing the chemicals used by the rubber industry, the two companies said. Taminco makes amines -- starting materials for synthetic processes.
Neither company provided terms of the transaction in which Taminco will acquire assets and assume contracts and obligations related to production of tetramethylthiuram disulfide (TMTD) and tetraethylthiuram disulfide (TETD) products used in rubber production.
"Due to the emergence of lower-cost competition, the TMTD and TETD products manufactured by Solutia at Cologne are no longer competitive on a global scale," said Mike Donnelly, president and general manager for Solutia's technical specialties business.
Solutia will continue to produce TMTD and TETD at Cologne for Belgium-based Taminco during a transition through the end of the first quarter of next year.
Shares of Solutia sank 11 cents to $10.92 in morning trading.
