Celanese Initiates Shutdown of Ocotlán, Mexico Manufacturing Facility

Fri, June 28 2019

DALLAS & OCOTLÁN, Mexico--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE), a global chemical and specialty materials company, today announces a further consolidation of its global acetate manufacturing operations by initiating the shutdown of its manufacturing facility in Ocotlán, Jalisco, Mexico.

The consolidation is designed to strengthen the company’s competitive position, reduce fixed costs and align future production capacities with anticipated industry demand.

Previously in June of 2018, Celanese announced it would discontinue the production of acetate tow at the Ocotlán facility. Today, Celanese is announcing that it will also discontinue the production of acetate flake at the Ocotlán site, essentially ceasing all manufacturing operations at the facility by October 31, 2019.

Marcel van Amerongen, Vice President of Celanese’s Acetate Tow business, stated:

“With China manufacturers completing plans for expanding acetate flake capacity in 2020, demands for imported flake will be reduced significantly. This, in combination with our ability to source additional volumes from our Narrows, Virginia facility, supports our decision to completely shut down our Ocotlán facility. This decision allows Celanese to further optimize cost and footprint as part of the long-term strategy for our acetate business to maintain its competitive position in the marketplace.”

The company will continue to serve its global acetate tow customers via its wholly owned facilities in Lanaken, Belgium, and Narrows, Virginia, USA, as well as through the company’s acetate tow joint venture partners in China.

Celanese has taken steps to strengthen its competitive position in the acetate tow market by lowering raw materials cost, reducing fixed costs and aligning with anticipated industry demand trends, such as optimizing production across all acetate tow manufacturing locations, as well as having made significant capital investments in the company’s manufacturing operations.

Van Amerongen concluded: “This was an extremely difficult decision given the impact to our employees and the local community, and we are dedicated to making this transition as smooth as possible. All impacted employees will be eligible for a comprehensive package of benefits which includes outplacement assistance, generous severance pay and other benefits intended to help individuals and families make a successful transition to the next phase of life. Today’s action is not a reflection of the quality of work performed by our employees at the Ocotlán site or the ongoing work performed by our employees in other acetate production sites, but instead the result of the critical evaluation of all strategic options to ensure the continued success of our acetate tow business.”

Financial details regarding this action will be disclosed in upcoming periodic reports as required by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Celanese

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. Our businesses use the full breadth of Celanese's global chemistry, technology and commercial expertise to create value for our customers, employees, shareholders and the corporation. As we partner with our customers to solve their most critical business needs, we strive to make a positive impact on our communities and the world through The Celanese Foundation. Based in Dallas, Celanese employs approximately 7,700 employees worldwide and had 2018 net sales of $7.2 billion. For more information about Celanese Corporation and its product offerings, visit www.celanese.com or our blog at www.celaneseblog.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain “forward-looking statements,” which include information concerning the company’s plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future revenues or performance, capital expenditures and other information that is not historical information. When used in this release, the words “outlook,” “forecast,” “estimates,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “plans,” “intends,” “believes,” and variations of such words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and beliefs and various assumptions. There can be no assurance that the company or its customers will realize these benefits or that these expectations will prove correct. There are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this release. Numerous factors, many of which are beyond the company’s control, could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed as forward-looking statements. Other risk factors include those that are discussed in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and the company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190628005452/en/

Celanese
Investor Relations
Chuck Kyrish
+1 972 443 4574
chuck.kyrish@celanese.com

Media Relations – Global
W. Travis Jacobsen
+1 972 443 4400
william.jacobsen@celanese.com

Media Relations Europe (Germany)
Jens Kurth
+49(0)69 45009 1574
j.kurth@celanese.com

Source: Celanese Corporation