LEVERKUSEN, Germany (March 11, 2009)—Specialty chemicals supplier Lanxess A.G. has launched an independent sales company in Moscow to manage the company's business in Russia and other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
Lanxess announced it would set up a sales company in Russia last fall. The office for the firm—called OOO Lanxess—will be located in the Federation Tower in Moscow and will primarily market high-performance rubber, chemical and plastic products.
The Leverkusen-based company's commitment to Russia represents a major step in the long-term growth strategy of our company, especially in the BRIC—Brazil, Russia, India and China—countries, said Axel C. Heitmann, chairman of Lanxess' board of management. The BRIC countries account for about 15 percent of Lanxess' sales, he said.
The company said it expects Russian and CIS economic growth rates over the next few years to be significantly above that of Western Europe, with the growth driven by the automotive, tire, agricultural, chemical, construction and electronic industries.
Lanxess posted sales of about $51 million in Russia in 2007 and will initially have a team of 30 employees based in Moscow. The company also opened recently a branch office in Kiev, Ukraine.
In addition to the new sales company, Lanxess' wholly-owned subsidiary Rhein Chemie plans to build a production facility near the city of Nizhny Novgorod, located east of Moscow. The plant, to be completed by mid-2010, will produce polymerbound additives and release agents for the rubber processing and tire industry.