Indorama Ventures

Indorama Ventures

To be a world-class company making great products for society.
Type	Public
Traded as	SET: IVL[1]
Industry	Petrochemicals
Founded	1994 (1994)[2]
Founder	Aloke Lohia
Headquarters	Worldwide, Bangkok, Thailand
Number of locations	70 [3]
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Aloke Lohia (Founder, Vice Chairman and Group CEO)
Products	polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyester fibers and yarns, wool yarns, purified terephthalic acid (PTA), ethylene oxide (EO), ethylene glycol (EG)
Revenue	USD 7.2 Billion (2017)[4]
Number of employees	14,000[5]
Divisions	Feedstock, PET, Fibers
Website	www.indoramaventures.com

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited, founded by Indian businessman Aloke Lohia, is one of the world's leading producers in the intermediate petrochemicals industry and a leading global manufacturer of wool yarns. The company is headquartered in Bangkok and started its operations in 1994.^[2] The Company products are divided into three categories: feedstock, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and fibers. As of 2017, the Company has 70 manufacturing sites in 24 countries crossing four continents: Asia, Europe, North America and Africa,^[5] and is listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).^[1]

Background of the business

Beginning of Business in Thailand

Entry into the PET business

Indorama Ventures commenced business operations in 1994 with the incorporation of Indorama Holdings Ltd., which was the first worsted wool yarn producer in Thailand.

The Group’s PET business segment comprises primarily the manufacture and sale of PET, a plastic polymer resin primarily used for beverage containers and food packaging, as well as for the packaging of pharmaceuticals and household products as well as in industrial packaging applications. Moreover, the Group also manufactures High Value Added (HVA) products such as packaging for oxygen-sensitive foods and beverages.

In 1995, IVL entered the petrochemical industry focusing on the polyester value chain business with the establishment of a PET resin facility in Thailand. Since then, each successive growth and addition has been committed to the polyester value chain. It has become a major global polyester value chain producer with a presence in three key business segments, PET resin, polyester fibers and Feedstock comprising PTA, MEG and various EO derivatives. The PET business has been achieved through greenfield investments, strategic acquisitions, and brownfield expansions.

From 1995 to 2002, PET business has grown after engaging in the downstream production of PET preforms, bottles and closures through a joint venture with Serm Suk Pcl, as well as through various expansion projects leading to increased capacities

Entry into the Fibers business

The Group’s fiber business segment comprises the manufacture and sale of a variety of polyester and other types of fibers and yarns (which are also used in the Group’s HVA products, particularly in personal care, automotive and industrial applications). Polyester is one of the most widely used synthetic fibers in the world and is a versatile material with wide-ranging textile and industrial applications. The development in the polyester business has been achieved through the acquisition of distressed assets and organic growth through debottlenecking and asset optimization. IVL entered into the polyester business in 1997 through the acquisition of Indo Poly, a polyester fiber plant in Thailand. In 2008, the company acquired Tuntex Thailand, the largest polyester fiber producer in Thailand. Both of the polyester facilities were acquired as distressed assets at a discount to their replacement cost and have been successfully turned around. In 2009, Indo Poly transferred all of its assets to, and all of its liabilities were assumed by Tuntex Thailand, which was subsequently re-named Indorama Polyester Industries.^[6]

Background integration into Feedstock

The Group's feedstock business segment comprises the manufacture, production and sale of PTA, MEG, EO derivatives and by-products, which are raw materials used in the production of the Group's polyester products. The Group's feedstock business segment supports its PET and polyester business segments and forms part of its strategy to vertically integrate its operations.

Becoming global leader

Expansion of PET business in US and Europe

The PET production footprint internationally expanded into North America in 2003, with the acquisition of the StarPet facility, and into Europe in 2006, with the commencement of Orion Global PET facility. The expansion made us the only PET resin producer with operations in the three largest consuming regions of Asia, Europe and North America. The further expansion of manufacturing presence with the acquisition of two PET resin facilities from Eastman Chemical Company in Europe in 2008, and a Greenfield investment in the PET business with AlphaPet in North America in 2009. In the first half of 2011, IVL had completed major acquisitions of PET plants in China, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland and United States, leading the company to become the world’s largest PET producer and the largest player in Europe.^[7] PET production footprint was expanded to Africa by implementing the new solid state polymerization SSP plant in Nigeria, which started commercial operations in 2012. In 2012, PT Polypet Karyapersada which is located at Cilegon, Indonesia, was acquired as IVL's PET production asset. In 2015, IVL has expanded its business into the Middle East following the acquisition of two PET plants in Turkey, one in the southern region and one in northern region of Turkey. In May 2015, the Group also acquired a stake in Bangkok Polyester Public Company Limited, a PET producer in Thailand which further consolidated PET production in the local market. Recently, IVL acquired PET business of Micro Polypet Private Limited (MicroPet) and its two subsidiaries Sanchit Polymers Private Limited and Eternity Infrabuild Private Limited in India.

Expansion of Polyester business

In the first half of 2011, polyester production footprint expanded internationally into Indonesia and USA. Later in November 2011, there was an acquisition of the PET and Polyester fibers recycling businesses of Wellman International in Europe, which consisted of three production facilities in the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands, and France. In January 2012, IVL acquired 100% of FiberVisions Holdings LLC, a global manufacturer of specialty mono and bi-component fibers based in Duluth, Georgia, USA.

Backward Integration into MEG

In 2012, IVL took another step upward to feedstock integration by the acquisition of Old World Industries I, Ltd. and Old World Transportation, Ltd. in the USA, which is the largest single EO/EG production facility in the U.S. Mono Ethylene Glycol (MEG) is one of the company’s key feedstocks together with Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA) in the manufacture of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) and Polyester Fibers and Yarns, both downstream products of IVL. Recently, the acquisition from Compañía Española de Petróleos (CEPSA) which is PTA business in Canada and IVL also acquired 100% of Indorama Ventures Olefins Holding LLC, an old ethylene cracker in USA in September 2015 (under refurbishment).

Business Differentation

High Value Added (HVA) Segments

IVL has invested laterally into high value added products in PET, Polyester fibers and yarns, Polypropylene fibers and yarns, Nylon fibers and yarns and Purified Ethylene Oxide PEO. The expansion into HVA products has helped mitigate the weakness that the commodity sector has seen over the past two years allowing us to maintain healthy margins. The company has made significant headway on the HVA front as a market leader and innovator of numerous products. IVL's specialty range has enhanced the brand value of IVL making the company a total global solutions provider. In 2015, HVA portfolio represented 21% of production and 48% of consolidated core EBITDA. Core EBITDA is calculated as book EBITDA less inventory gains or losses less extraordinary items if any.

Recycling Business

In 2011, IVL acquired Wellman International in Europe. At the beginning of 2014, the company extended the know-how obtained from Wellman International and commenced production of the recycled PET and fiber facility in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand. IVL expected to further leverage on Wellman’s bottle to flake technology on a global scale. The company have also integrated three production sites in USA and Mexico with recycled PET and objective is to continue to increase the use of recycled PET in the operations.

Raising Capital

Initial Public Offering

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited became a public company on September 25, 2009. As of December 31, 2014, the Company has registered capital of Bt 5,666,010,499 with paid-up capital of Bt 4,814,257,245 totaling 4,814,257,245 ordinary shares at par value of Bt 1 per share. The major shareholder of the Company is Indorama Resources Limited, owned 99.99% by Canopus International. (Canopus International is owned by Mr. Aloke Lohia and his immediate family and Mr. Sri Prakash Lohia and his immediate family). Mr. Aloke Lohia and his immediate family hold 49% with voting rights over 76% of total votes of Canopus International while Mr. Sri Prakash Lohia and his immediate family hold 51% with voting rights over 24.0% of total votes of Canopus International. In January, 2010, Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited completed initial public offering of 400,000,000 ordinary shares at an offering price of Baht 10.20 per ordinary share. The total amount raised in cash from initial public offering of shares Baht 4,080 million. Simultaneously, the minority shareholders of Indorama Polymers Public Company Limited, subsidiary of IVL listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand were offered under an exchange offer 582,727,137 ordinary shares of Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited. The ordinary shares of Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited were listed and commenced trading on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (the SET) on February 5, 2010. The ticker symbol is IVL. Indorama Ventures, during the course of 2010 became a member of the major indices, SET 50 Index, FTSE SET Large Cap Index and MSCI.

Rights Offering

In November, 2010, the Board of Directors passed a resolution to increase the authorized share capital from Baht 4,334,271,047 to Baht 4,815,856,719 and reserve the increase in authorized share capital of Baht 481,585,672 for the exercise of Transferable Subscription Rights (TSR). The Board approved a rights issue of TSRs to existing shareholders at the ratio of one TSR for every nine existing ordinary shares held of IVL. The conversion ratio was 1:1. One TSR to one ordinary share and the exercise price of the TSR to ordinary shares is Baht 36 per ordinary share. On December 17, 2010, at the extraordinary general meeting of shareholders (EGM) the shareholders approved the issue, allocation and the terms and conditions of the TSR. On February 24, 2011 the subscription of TSRs was completed with 99.67% of TSRs being exercised into shares. A total of 479,986,198 new shares started trading on the SET on March 3, 2011. The total amount raised in cash from this rights issue is Baht 17,280 million.

Tender Offer

IVL's PET business was listed on the SET as Indorama Polymers Public Company Limited (IRP) in 2005. On December 24, 2009, IVL offered to purchase up to 100% of IRP through a tender offer whereby IRP shareholders (other than IVL and its subsidiaries) were offered IVL shares in exchange for IRP shares. The said tender offer was completed on February 1, 2010 which resulted in IVL holding directly and indirectly (through its subsidiary Indorama Holdings (Thailand) Limited) around 99.08% of the issued and paid-up capital of IRP. IRP shares were delisted from the SET on February 5, 2010 onwards.

Market Position

The PET market in North America is consolidated with the top three companies accounting for nearly 90% of the market with one third of the market each. Globally, Indorama Ventures is the market leader.^[8] The largest polyester fiber producer in Thailand. ^[9] A world scale manufacturer of PTA, a key raw material for the production of polyester.

List of Subsidiaries

Indorama Ventures is headquartered in Bangkok, Thailand. As of September 2016, it has 70 operating sites in 24 countries in four major regions of the world - Europe, America, Africa and Asia. The company’s portfolio consists of what it calls Necessities (products vital for life) and High Value-Added (HVA) products.

Operating Sites

Board of Directors

As of 2017,^[10] board members of Indorama Ventures are:

• Mr. Aloke Lohia, Group CEO
• Mr. Sri Prakash Lohia, Chairman
• Mrs. Suchitra Lohia, Director and Chairperson of Corporate Social Responsibility Committee
• Mr. Dilip Kumar Agarwal, Director, Member of Sustainability Committee and CEO of PET and Feedstock Business
• Mr. Udey Paul Singh Gill, Director, Member of Sustainability Committee and CEO of Fibers Business
• Mr. William Heinecke, Independent Director and Chairman of Nomination, Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee
• Mr. Rathian Srimongkol, Independent Director, Vice Chairman of the Board, Chairman of the Audit Committee and Member of Sustainability Committee
• Mr. Amit Lohia, Director
• Dr. Siri Ganjarerndee Independent Director, Member of the Audit Committee and Member of the Nomination, Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee
• Mr. Kanit Si, Independent Director and Member of Nomination, Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee
• Mr. Russell Leighton Kekuewa, Independent Director and Member of Sustainability Committee
• Mr. Chakramon Phasukavanich Independent Director
• Mr. Maris Samaram Independent Director, Member of the Audit Committee and Member of the Sustainability and Risk Management Committee
• Mr. Sanjay Ahuja Director and Senior Vice President Finance

Shareholding

The total numbers of shares in IVL are 4,814,257,245 shares.^[11] Indorama Resources Limited, Canopus International Limited and Mr. Aloke Lohia hold approximately 66.39% of the total shares (as included in the Section 258 of the Securities Exchange Act of related persons’ shareholding) while 33.61% are held by institutional and retail shareholders.

Listing

Indorama Ventures has been listed in the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) since February 5, 2010.^[12] The Company once listed its subsidiary, Indorama Polymers (IRP), in SET in 2005 and delisted it in 2010.^[2]

Awards/honors/recognitions

In November 2013, the Company received Board of the Year Award and Audit Committee of the Year Award^[13] from the Thai Institute of Directors Association (IOD)^[14] for outstanding implementation of good corporate governance.

In September 2014, the Company has been recognized as Forbes Asia Fab 50 Companies^[15] and ranked 47th in C&EN (Chemical and Engineering News)’s Global Top 50 of the world’s largest chemical producers.^[16]

In October 2014, the Company received Certification from Thailand’s Private Sector Collective Action Coalition against Corruption (CAC).^[17] It is a project organized by the Thai Institute of Directors Association, the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC),^[18] the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce (JFCCT),^[19] the Thai Listed Companies Association,^[20] the Thai Bankers’ Association,^[21] the Federation of Thai Capital Market Organizations,^[22] the Federation of Thai Industries^[23] and the Tourism Council of Thailand^[24] to award to companies who demonstrate their commitment to fighting against corruption.

In November 2014, the Company received the Outstanding Sustainability Report Award 2014,^[25] organized by the Thai Listed Companies Association, the Securities and Exchange Commission^[26] and Thaipat Institution,^[27] as well as the CSR Recognition Award 2014^[25] and the Top Corporate Governance Award 2014^[25] organized by the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

In June 2016, Indorama Ventures received the Best Polymer Producers Awards for Europe 2016 in the category of PET during the main conference of the European Plastics Converters (EuPC) Annual Meeting.

In 2016, Indorama Ventures is in the top 25 companies with good level of transparency in Transparency International's research on transparency in corporate reporting.^[28]

Charity/CSR activities

In August 2014, the Company signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Operation Smile Thailand,^[29][30] to provide support for surgery on children with cleft lips and palates in the country.

References