Alphacan, a subsidiary of the Arkema Group, announces a plan to divest its Sanitary and Heating Pipes business to the French company COMAP, a subsidiary of the Dutch group Aalberts Industries NV.

With the manufacture of PVC pipes and profiles accounting for the bulk of its activities, Alphacan is also France’s leading producer of pipes for Sanitary and Heating applications.

This Sanitary and Heating Pipes activity represents annual sales in the order of € 25 M, and involves the design, production and marketing of crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) systems for domestic hot water pipes, heating pipes, and floor heating/cooling networks.

PEX pipes are produced at the Nevers industrial site (France), which employs 85 people.

With this divestment, Alphacan intends to refocus on its core businesses.

The deal is subject to the legal information and consultation process with Alphacan’s personnel representative bodies.

A subsidiary of the Arkema group and one of the leaders in the plastics converting market, Alphacan employs 1,150 people at its 11 production sites in a number of European countries, namely France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands. Alphacan’s know-how and industrial expertise may be found in all manufactured products from its two sectors of activity, i.e. PVC Profiles and Pipes.

A global chemical company and France’s leading chemicals producer, Arkema consists of three strategically related businesses: Vinyl Products, Industrial Chemicals, and Performance Products. Arkema reports sales of 5.7 billion euros. Arkema has 15,200 employees in over 40 countries and six research centers located in France, the United States and Japan. With internationally recognized brands, Arkema holds leadership positions in its principal markets.