Air Liquide

This article is about the multinational industrial gas company. For the electronic band, see Air Liquide (band).
Air Liquide S.A.
Société Anonyme
Traded as Euronext: AI
Industry Chemicals
Founded 1902 (1902)
Headquarters Quai d'Orsay, 7th arrondissement, Paris, France
Key people
 Benoît Potier (Chairman and CEO)
Products Industrial gases, fine chemicals
Revenue €14.457 billion (2011)[1]
€2.409 billion (2011)[1]
Profit €1.535 billion (2011)[1]
Total assets €24.123 billion (end 2011)[1]
Total equity €9.995 billion (end 2011)[1]
Number of employees
 43,600 (average, 2010)[1]
Website www.airliquide.com

Air Liquide S.A., or Air Liquide (French pronunciation: ​[ɛʁ likid]; /ˌɛər lᵻˈkiːd/; literally "Liquid Air"), is a French multinational company which supplies industrial gases and services to various industries including medical, chemical and electronic manufacturers. Founded in 1902, it is the world's second largest supplier (after The Linde Group) of industrial gases by revenues and has operations in over 80 countries.[2] It is headquartered in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, France.[3] Air Liquide owned the patent for Aqua-Lung until it time-expired.

Although Air Liquide's headquarters are located in Paris, France, it also has a major site in Japan (ALL), as well as in Houston, TX, and Newark, DE, USA. There is an emphasis on research and development (R&D) throughout the Air Liquide company. R&D targets the creation of not only industrial gases, but also gases that are used in products such as healthcare items, electronic chips, foods and chemicals. The major R&D groups within Air Liquide focus on analysis, bioresources (foods and chemicals), combustion, membranes, modeling, and the production of Hydrogen (H2) gas.

The company is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.[4] As of 2009, the company is ranked 484 in the Fortune Global 500.[5]

History

From 2005 to 2008, Air Liquide increased its hydrogen production by more than 50 percent.[7]

In early 2008, Air Liquide entered a long term contract with Neste Oil’s Renewable Diesel Plant to supply hydrogen. Air Liquide is building a unit on Jurong Island to provide the means for the deal. They plan to turn the unit into an integrated Hydrogen Pipeline Network that will provide services to regional companies.[8]

In November 2015, Air Liquide announced it would acquire American firm Airgas for a total of $13.4 billion including debt.[9]

Subsidiaries

Aqua Lung/La Spirotechnique

See Aqua Lung/La Spirotechnique.

A well-known French firm which makes scuba gear, scuba sets and other breathing apparati. It started making the so-called Aqua-Lung regulators, like the CG45 (1945) and the Mistral (1955), among others.

Lurgi GmbH

A German engineering, construction and chemical process licensing company. The head office is located in Frankfurt am Main. Lurgi GmbH has been part of Air Liquide S. A. since 2007. Lurgi was the cable address of Metallurgische Gesellschaft founded on 5 February 1897. Its origin dates back to the technical branch of Metallgesellschaft, which had been established by Wilhelm Merton in 1881.

By the end of World War I, the company had gained a foothold in the steam and absorption business and gathered expertise in the upgrading of solid fuels and the processing of the resulting gaseous and liquid products. As a consequence of this diversification, the company divided into process-specific subsidiaries, which from 1919 traded under the name of LURGI. In 1923, they jointly moved to into offices at Gervinusstrasse, Frankfurt am Main. In order to meet the requirements of the international markets, Lurgi constituted itself as a German stock corporation in 1990. Its operating limited liability companies - chemistry, metallurgy and industry construction; energy and environmental techniques; gas- and mineral oil technics – each had their own engineering and commercial staff. In 1991, Lurgi pooled its polymer activities by taking over Zimmer AG from the British Davy-McKee AG as the fourth operating company. In 2001 Lurgi sold their metallurgical division (Lurgi Metallurgie) to Outokumpu.

Lurgi today focuses on three primary technology portfolios:

Environmental

The Air Liquide group helps companies in a number of industries through industrial gas and energy solutions services. As a result, a number of companies have improved their ability to handle their environmental responsibilities.[8]

Financial data

Financial data in millions of euro
Year 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Sales 8 328 7 900 8 399 9 400 10 435 10 949
EBITDA 1 833 1 960 1 975 2 084 2 415 2 567
Net Results 460 703 725 778 933 1 002
Net Debt 2 584 2 022 1 730 3 790 3 740 3 447
Research 146 150 146 150 162 173
Employees 30 800 30 800 31 900 35 900 35 900 36 900
Source :'OpesC'

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Annual Report 2010" (PDF). Air Liquide. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  2. ↑ "." Air Liquide. Retrieved on 31 January 2011.
  3. ↑ "Legal notice." Air Liquide. Retrieved on 7 July 2010.
  4. ↑ Frankfurt Stock Exchange
  5. ↑ ""Air Liquide in Fortune Global 500 2009", July 20, 2009. Accessed August 18, 2010.
  6. ↑ Those two scuba sets made by Air Liquide are mentioned in the opening credits of the film as scaphandre autonome "air liquide" système Cousteau ("air liquide's scuba set, Cousteau system").
  7. ↑ "Air Liquide signs letter of intent with ConocoPhillips to construct new hydrogen unit in the San Francisco Bay Area", euronext.com. January 30, 2006. Accessed May 16, 2008.
  8. 1 2 ""Air Liquide: SOXAL Develops Key Hydrogen Business in Singapore", fininfo.fr. January 15, 2008. Accessed May 16, 2008.
  9. ↑ "France's Air Liquide to buy U.S. peer Airgas in $13.4 billion deal". Reuters. 17 November 2015.

External links

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