In an update on plastic resin manufacturer Qenos's possible closure of its Australian plants, a new report reveals the company's Chinese owner, China National Chemical, has reached an agreement to sell Qenos to Logos Group, an industrial and logistics property developer.
An article published in The Australian (4 April) indicates that it is not the Qenos operating business that is the drawcard for Logos. Rather, it is the location of the industrial sites in Botany, NSW and Altona, VIC, strategically situated near water and rail transport infrastructure. In other words, if the deal goes through, it is likely the manufacturing operations will cease.
The Botany site of Qenos has already been closed for over a year, following a cooling tower collapse in February 2023, but was in the process of being rebuilt until, in March this year, when it was close to completion, work on the site was paused, much to the chagrin of customers who had been led to believe the plant would be back on stream soon.
According to The Australian, the deal with Logos is yet to be completed, citing a spokesperson for Logos saying that a conditional share sale transaction had been entered into, but there is “no certainty a transaction will eventuate”.
However, the deal would solve the financial challenges for Qenos. Documents filed with Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) show that in FY 2022 it booked a $79.7m loss, following a $320.4m loss the previous year. Qenos also reportedly faces environmental liabilities at the ageing manufacturing sites.
Qenos currently employs around 700 people across the two sites. Its Altona resins plant produces 105 kT of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) per year, and its Botany plant produces 70 kT of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) per year, and 100 kT a year of linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE).
The materials are widely used in the packaging industry across, food, pharma, cosmetics and personal care sectors.
The general consensus of packaging industry experts is that the closure of Qenos manufacturing plants will be a huge blow to Australia’s plastics circularity ambitions.
