WEGO is Set to Expand TDO Capacity - ICIS News

June 07, 2004 Following its acquisition of Degussa’s thiourea dioxide (TDO) business, Wego Chemical and Mineral Corp. has set about expanding its own operations in anticipation of a growing market for the bleaching and deinking agent, also known as formamidine sulfinic acid (FAS). Degussa sold its TDO activities to Wego. The purchase included associated intellectual property and trademarked products, including DegaFAS, DegaFAS AS, Reducing Agent F and Depilor, as well as Degussa’s customer base. In March, Degussa Corp. sold its TDO activities to Great Neck, N.Y.-based Wego. The purchase included associated intellectual property and trademarked products, including DegaFAS, DegaFAS AS, Reducing Agent F and Depilor, as well as Degussa’s customer base. Under Degussa, the unit had sales of $6 million per year. Degussa’s plant in Austria will cease TDO production by midyear, while Wego transfers production and all intellectual property rights to its site in China. In a recent visit to CMR’s offices, Wego’s principals, Bert Eshaghpour and Edward Khalily, discussed the company’s plans, which include doubling TDO capacity at the company’s facility in Qingzhou, China, to 6,000 metric tons per year in the next three to four months. Degussa technicians are working there to assist the expansion. “The expansion should fill the vacuum created by the shutdown of Degussa’s facility,” says Mr. Khalily. Some of Degussa’s customers are already being supplied by Wego, he adds. The paper and textile industries are the primary customers for TDO. “As the need for recycled fiber grows, so will the need for our product,” says Mr. Eshaghpour. “The next three to five years look to be positive for growth. After Degussa, we are the only company both producing and marketing the product around the globe.” Wego’s annual sales are between $75 million and $80 million, and the company projects 12 percent growth per year. The TDO purchase may add about $7 million to $8 million in sales.

Posted on October 30, 2015