Industrial gas company, Linde, has announced that it will build, own, and operate a new air separation plant for Samsung's new semiconductor plant in Pyeongtaek, South Korea.

Why we need Linde:

Back in 1895, Carl von Linde pioneered the cryogenic separation of air by cooling the gas into a liquid and distilling it. Today Linde (his company) uses a similar process to pull pure nitrogen, oxygen, and argon from the air. Nitrogen is typically used for inerting and purging, oxygen for deposition and etching, and argon for plasma and high-temperature inerting. We could not make electronics if it weren't for these industrial gases.

Zooming out:

Samsung's new $25 billion semiconductor fabrication facility is speculated to produce "NAND, DRAM, image sensors, and handset application processors.". As demand for electronics continues to rise, Linde and Samsung's now 42-year partnership shows no signs of coming to an end.

Read the press release here.

US-based chemicals company, Huntsman, has announced that it will be selling its India-based consumer adhesives business to Pidilite Industries for $285 million in cash.

First, a little background:

Back in 2003, Huntsman began its business in India through a complex set of acquisitions. Since then it has taken that "business and built it from almost nothing to be a market leader in India.". The consumer adhesives business produces the adhesives you know best—super glue, wood glue, multi-purpose, etc.

So why the divestment?

Huntsman has a small footprint in India and knows that the cash gained from the sale can be put to work elsewhere. Huntsman's CEO said the money will go towards "growth assets that fit even better within our core Advanced Materials specialty business.". Pidilite, a leader in the Indian consumer adhesives business, "is in a better position to invest in and more aggressively grow" the assets.

Read the press release here.

Dutch-based oil major, Shell, has announced that it will be further reducing its refining portfolio from 14 sites to 6 sites.

Important context:

Shell owned and operated 54 refineries just one decade ago. Last year, the company was down to 19 sites with the plan of further reducing that count to 10.

Why are they doing this?

Shell expects growth in chemicals to "pivot to more performance chemicals and recycled feedstocks.", so they will be fully integrating chemicals into the remaining 6 sites. That integration will allow the refineries to be less affected by the bottoms of the refining cycle. The announcement is also aligned with Shell's net-zero emissions by 2050 goal.

Read the press release here.