Eastman Chemical ready to license its production in India

The US-based, $ 4.59 billion turnover chemicals giant, Eastman Chemical Inc., -- whose product portfolio consists of more than 400 chemicals and fine chemicals – is reportedly willing to license suitable Indian chemical and pharmaceutical companies to manufacture various oxo-chemicals. This was confirmed by Mr. Harish Davey, managing director, South Asia for the company.

Eastman Chemical had already set the licensing ball rolling, when it recently signed MoU's with Reliance Industries Ltd, Mumbai and Shasun Chemicals and Drugs Ltd, Chennai, for the manufacturing of some chemicals. (The Indian tie ups).

Mr. Davey stated that the company has four product platforms that could be used for the license manufacture deals. These are acetyls, oxo chemicals, plastics and fine chemicals. The company has over 1,200 process patents, which are not being utilized.

According to Mr. Davey, in a restructuring exercise aimed at toning up the organisation, the company realised that the intellectual wealth created over the last eighty years was being wasted. That was when the company took the decision to license the manufacture of its various products to competent companies.

The company has segmented its various products into three categories for the purposes of the licensing decision. These are products that are not core to the company but are now being manufactured; products that are strategic but not manufactured despite having the technology and strategic products that are being manufactured. While the company will clearly license the manufacture of products in the first two categories, it is not averse to looking at licensing in the third category "if it makes sense to the company", as in the Reliance Industries case.

The company is also negotiating with couple of Chinese and Korean chemical companies for similar deals. The licensing deals will ensure that the demand - supply balance in this region is not disturbed by the deals.