DuPont Could Consider Consolidation Option as Crop Prices Fall and Fertilizer Output Spikes

Companies engaged in farm-focused businesses are seeking out opportunities for consolidation in the backdrop of the recent downslide in crop prices, which has only been aggravated by an increase in fertilizer output. Last week, the Dow Chemical Co said that it was conducting a fresh review of its farm chemicals and seeds business unit. And now, latest reports suggest that DuPont is also considering this strategy to offset the impact of the unfavorable market forces.

DuPont’s interim CEO, Edward Breen, said this week that the company would do what it takes to provide maximum value to their shareholders. He was responding to questions about whether the company was considering selling its farm unit. Edward took charge in early October 2015 in place on Ellen Kullman, who abruptly vacated office.

There have been rumors suggesting that DuPont is considering taking over Dow’s farm unit. This has left market watchers wondering whether the company has the resources to pull off a deal of such major proportions. Breen did not confirm whether or not his company was willing to either purchase a farm unit or sell its own. As of September 30, 2015, Du Pont’s farm unit represented about 22% of the total revenue filed by the company. However, the company expects its sales to show a dip of about 11% to 12% in 2015.

Breen said that DuPont would soon be reviewing its capital allocation strategy afresh and will also be taking a fresh look at its cost structure. The company is one of the largest players in the agricultural chemicals industry. According to the current financial plans of DuPont, it plans to achieve savings to the tune of US$1.6 billion annually by the end of 2017. However, there is a possibility that the company might have to cut back on this target by at least 10% to 20%, a report in Reuters said.

Recovering Russian Economy Revitalizes Demand for Specialty Chemicals

Russia is on the verge of reporting a full economic recovery and this will in turn lead to a higher demand for specialty chemicals, market watchers expect. The financial sanctions imposed on Russia by Western nations in the wake of the Ukraine crisis dealt a blow to the Russian economy. But the country is finally on the brink of emerging from the rough phase.

As the state of the Russian economy improves, the demand for specialty chemicals is expected to return to pre-crisis levels. According to current projections, the surge in the demand for specialty chemicals will largely be brought about by the defense and aerospace, construction, food processing, and consumer electronics industries.

The Russian defense sector, for instance, is expected to see a few multimillion dollar deals in the next few months. The Russian Defense Ministry has reportedly initiated talks with manufacturers of specialty chemicals for the development of chemical-based weapons and combat equipment. The Russian air force has also been in talks with U.S. specialty chemicals supplier, Socomore, to obtain specialty chemicals for a project pertaining to sixth-generation Russian combat aircraft. Currently being developed by the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), the aircraft is expected to enter serial production somewhere between 2020 and 2022, as it is still in the design stage.

In recent years, the Russian chemicals market has been characterized by a shift from commodity chemicals to specialty chemicals. This shift has opened new avenues for investments for chemical multinationals. These opportunities are accentuated by the fact that the current market penetration levels of specialty chemicals remain low in Russia.

The booming Russian construction industry, too, is ready to take off and will create substantial demand for specialty chemicals in the near future. What might aid the growth of the Russian specialty chemicals market is also the fact that labor costs in Russia are lower than in several other emerging nations. As a result, there is a strong likelihood of chemical majors setting up full-fledged specialty chemicals production facilities in the country over the foreseeable future.

Fuel Consumption in United Kingdom Shows Strong Recovery

A noticeable rise in fuel consumption is being reported from the United Kingdom on account of an upturn in the economic scenario and a decline in fuel prices. According to the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change, fuel consumption in the country is rising at a rate that’s higher than the previous decade. According to officials, the consumption of petroleum in the UK was seen to have increased by 1.6% in H1 2015.

The UK’s roads are now busier than ever, as the economy stands back on its feet. The rates currently being observed in the UK are reportedly the highest since 2005, when petroleum consumption had peaked (in keeping with the trend in other advanced economies). However, with the recession setting in shortly after, the consumption of petroleum saw a progressive decline. Although economic recovery in the UK had begun post 2010, high fuel prices essentially kept consumption low.

Official records show that there has been a steady rise in petroleum consumption in the UK since 2014 Q3. Not surprisingly, the increased fuel consumption in the UK is in keeping with the sharp decline in oil prices that caused a massive upheaval in the oil and gas industry.

Moreover, in Britain, there has been a steady shift from petrol-fuelled vehicles to diesel-fuelled vehicles. This trend has also affected the fuel consumption dynamics to some extent. Market analysts have said that the consumption of diesel is rising at a much higher rate than that of petrol. Moreover, road transportation in the UK is currently at its busiest and this aspect will further contribute to an increase in petrol consumption.

The airlines industry has been seeing an increase in traffic as well, stimulating demand for aviation fuel. However, it is not just the UK, the US has also been reporting an increase in fuel consumption with the economy faring well and fuel prices being lower than before.

New Dip-Coating Technique Helps Create Fiber-Like Polymer LEDs

A team of researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Research and Technology’s School of Electrical Engineering have developed a variety of light emitting diodes (LEDs) with fiber-like properties that extend the scope of applications of wearable displays. The findings of this latest research study were published in the Advanced Electronic Materials journal. According to Kwon Seon-Il, the lead author of the study, the commercialization of this technology could make the production of wearable displays as easy as that of clothes. 

The conventional method of manufacturing wearable displays entailed the manufacture of hard substrates that were then attached to textile surfaces. The key drawback of this technique was that the rigidity of wearable displays made their use in several applications unfeasible. 

The team of scientists that developed the fiber-like LEDs decided to leave behind the traditional approach of creating LED displays on a rigid, plane surface. In place of the conventional approach, the scientists focused on creating wearable LED displays with fiber-like attributes. 

This technology is known as the dip-coating process, named thus because it entails bathing a 3D rod in a superyellow solution. The fiber rod is used as a replacement to conventional fabric fiber. In order to build the textile, regular organic materials are deposited as layers on the fiber’s thread. 

The advantage of the dip coating process is that it enables organic materials to be deposited in layers on the fibers with a cylindrical, 3D structure. It was hitherto difficult to achieve this using the heat-coating process. The dip-coating process also lends better flexibility with regard to the thickness of the coating.

The new process can help mass production of fiber-based wearable LED displays, which can be used in a myriad of industrial and commercial applications. For instance, with the use of roll-to-roll technology processing technology, electronic devices can be created on a roll of metal foil or even flexible plastic. From the standpoint of costs, this technology is not prohibitively expensive.