Industry: Specialty chemicals

HF Sinclair plans to separate its Lubricants & Specialties business, retire its 15,600-barrel-per-day Ontario base oil refinery, and replace internal production with long-term supply agreements. Similar portfolio activity is visible across the industry: BP sold a controlling interest in Castrol, Saudi Aramco acquired Valvoline’s global products business, and private-equity-backed distributors continue to add local businesses. […]

The catalyst industry is entering a new phase, with 2026 marking a period of significant portfolio realignment and expansion into adjacent catalyst technologies and services across refining, petrochemical, polymer, and emissions-control markets. The transactions shown in Exhibit 1 highlight a broader shift in how companies are positioning themselves across the catalyst value chain. For instance, […]

Convened in collaboration with a Fortune 500 company exploring the future evolution of materials markets. Houston, Texas | August 31, 2026 What is the ADI Thinklab? Invitation-only series ADI ThinkLab is ADI Analytics’ invitation-only series of executive discussions that brings together industry leaders, researchers, technology developers, investors, and other experts to explore emerging trends shaping […]

Recent disruptions in the Middle East—including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the shutdown of Shell’s Pearl GTL facility in Qatar—have significantly tightened global supplies of Group III and Group III+ base oils, the primary feedstocks used in synthetic lubricants. At the same time, substantial capacity additions from LAO producers in Asia and […]

Liquid bulk storage operators are entering a more selective growth cycle. Demand remains resilient across fuels, chemicals, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), natural gas liquids (NGLs), biofuels, ammonia, and methanol. Increasingly, value is shifting toward terminals that can handle a broader range of products, connect to major trade routes, and generate higher returns from existing assets. […]

ADI Analytics is pleased to announce its participation in the 2026 Annual Convention & Expo, which took place April 20–22, 2026, in Nashville, Tennessee. During the event, ADI Analytics presented “Adhesives and Sealants Outlook Remained Resilient Amidst a Structural Shift.” The presentation explored the evolving market landscape for adhesives and sealants, highlighting how long‑term demand […]

The coatings, adhesives, sealants, and elastomers (CASE) sector is in the middle of a structural reset. What was once a market defined by steady, incremental growth is now being reshaped by multi‑billion‑dollar mergers, aggressive portfolio pruning, and a widening gap between scale leaders and specialized innovators. As diversified chemical companies separate high‑value specialty businesses from […]

Part of ADI Analytics’ ongoing coverage of the implications of the Iran conflict across oil & gas, LNG, refined products, and chemicals. The escalation of the Iran conflict has translated into a direct disruption of global chemical supply chains through reduced reliability of exports and transit via the Strait of Hormuz. Feedstocks and intermediates that […]

The global chemical industry struggled in 2025, with total shareholder returns lagging broader markets over both five- and ten-year periods. Looking ahead to 2026, this gap is expected to widen as oversupply meets soft demand and rising trade and regulatory pressures continue to weigh on the sector. While lower inflation and selective feedstock advantages offer […]

In the February 2026 edition of the ADI Chemicals Newsletter, Dow expands propylene glycol capacity in Thailand as specialty demand grows. M&A activity progresses with ADNOC and OMV advancing their Borouge transaction, and Fertiglobe, Covestro, and TA’ZIZ strengthening ammonia and sustainability collaboration. Europe continues to rationalize capacity, with Dow, TotalEnergies, and the Covestro–LyondellBasell JV announcing […]

At the 2026 ADI Forum, Uday Turaga, CEO of ADI, provided a cross-segment outlook on the energy and chemical value chains. He highlighted the firm’s focus on the strategic interfaces between upstream production, global gas markets, and power generation, emphasizing how infrastructure and geopolitical shifts are reshaping global commodity flows. Key themes included a shift […]

At the 2026 ADI Forum, Jonatas Melo, President, Baystar; Badrish Krishnan, Director of Specialty Polymers, SK Geo Centric; and John Uhran, CEO, Locus Fermentation Solutions joined Uday Turaga, CEO, ADI Analytics for the Chemicals and Plastics panel. Key themes discussed were the industry’s ongoing struggle with global overcapacity and margin compression, the wave of asset rationalizations […]