Irving-based Celanese Corp. signed a deal Thursday with Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co. to form a food ingredients joint venture.
The joint venture will operate as Nutrinova, with Celanese owning a 30% stake and Mitsui acquiring the remaining 70% for $472.5 million. Celanese also will contribute assets, technology and employees to the business.
The companies expect the deal to close later this year.
Celanese, a global chemical and specialty materials company with $9.7 billion in sales last year, said it will use the cash to pay down debt. Its food ingredients business generated about $170 million in sales in 2022.
The Nutrinova joint venture builds on an existing partnership between the two companies. Mitsui holds long-standing positions across Asia’s food chain. Celanese will continue to supply acetyls to the new joint venture. Acetyls are petrochemicals with a wide variety of uses, including food flavoring and preservation, pharmaceuticals, paints and adhesives.
Celanese said its food business is a leading producer of acesulfame potassium sweetener known as Ace-K, as well as sorbic acid and potassium sorbate preservatives. The company invented the zero-calorie sweetener Sunett Ace-K.
Mitsui is one of Japan’s largest companies, ranking 107th in this year’s Fortune 500, with sales of $106 billion. Its business spans nearly every sector — including iron and steel products, energy, machinery, infrastructure and food resources.
The companies’ intention to form the joint venture was announced earlier this year.
