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Syensqo: The Science Company Born from 160 Years of Chemical Innovation
I. Introduction & Episode Roadmap
On December 11, 2023, something remarkable happened on Euronext Brussels. A €9.5 billion company began trading for the very first time—yet its roots stretched back 160 years to a young Belgian chemist's revolutionary invention. On December 8, 2023, shareholders approved the plan to spin off Solvay into two independent, publicly listed companies: Solvay and Syensqo.
The name itself is a puzzle designed to honor that heritage. "SY" links back to the first and last letters of Solvay. "EN" nods to Ernest Solvay, the visionary founder. "SYENS" evokes Solvay's scientific legacy—particularly the legendary 1911 Solvay Conference when Ernest brought 24 of the world's most brilliant minds together, including Albert Einstein and Marie Curie. The "Q" references the quantum physics discussed at that gathering. And "QO" simply means company.
Pronounced "science-co," the name captures precisely what this new entity aspires to be: a pure-play science company laser-focused on specialty materials for humanity's most pressing challenges.
The other activities, such as plastics for electronics and rechargeable batteries, were transferred to the new company called Syensqo, with Ilham Kadri as chairman, who was previously Solvay's General Manager since 2019. Syensqo began its specialty chemicals activities with 13,200 employees and an annual turnover of €7.9 billion.
This is the story of how a 160-year-old soda ash company transformed itself into a cutting-edge specialty materials leader in aerospace, batteries, and green hydrogen. It's a story about the power of portfolio transformation, the modern obsession with "pure plays," and the audacious bet that following megatrends—lightweighting, electrification, decarbonization—can create enduring value.
The big question: Was the split the right move? Can Syensqo execute against its ambitious growth platforms while navigating the operational challenges and environmental liabilities it inherited? And what lessons does this transformation offer for investors watching the ongoing restructuring of the global chemical industry?
II. The Solvay Origins: A 160-Year Scientific Legacy
In 1861, in a small gasworks owned by his uncle in Belgium, a 23-year-old named Ernest Solvay was supposed to be learning the family business. Instead, he spent his time obsessing over a different problem entirely: what to do with all the ammonia produced as a byproduct of gasmaking.
Ernest Gaston Joseph Solvay (16 April 1838 – 26 May 1922) was a Belgian chemist, industrialist and philanthropist. Born in Rebecq, he was prevented by his acute pleurisy from going to university. He worked in his uncle's chemical factory from the age of 21. In 1861, he, along with his brother Alfred Solvay, developed the ammonia-soda process (also known as the Solvay process) for the manufacturing of soda ash.
The timing was extraordinary. Soda ash—sodium carbonate—was one of the most important industrial chemicals of the era, essential for making glass, soap, and paper. But the existing Leblanc process was expensive, dirty, and produced mountains of toxic waste. Ernest's insight was elegant: use ammonia as a recyclable catalyst to convert salt and limestone into soda ash far more efficiently.
Solvay was created in 1863 as a start-up enterprise manufacturing sodium carbonate with a radically new industrial process. This was the dawn of the second industrial revolution, an era of a dogmatic belief in progress through science and industry.
In 1863, brothers Ernest (age 25) and Alfred Solvay (age 23) established Solvay & Cie as a limited partnership to commercialize the process, selecting Couillet near Charleroi, Belgium, for its proximity to glass-making industries that consumed soda ash.
The early years were brutal. Technical difficulties threatened to sink the venture before it could gain traction. But Ernest possessed both the scientific mind to solve process problems and the commercial instincts to scale them globally.
After difficult years of technical uncertainties, Solvay embarked on a rapid international expansion, building plants in the whole industrialized world. In 1900, 95% of the soda ash consumed in the World were produced using the Solvay process.
Consider what that means: within four decades, one company's process completely displaced an entire industry's technology. By the early 20th century, Solvay reached an annual soda ash production of 900,000 tons by 1900, with the Solvay process accounting for 95% of global consumption. By 1913, the company operated 34 plants across Europe.
Ernest Solvay's interests extended far beyond business. In 1911, he did something unprecedented: he invited 24 of the world's leading physicists to Brussels to debate the fundamental nature of matter and energy. That first Solvay Conference on Physics featured Albert Einstein, Marie Curie, Max Planck, and others who would reshape our understanding of the universe. The archives of these conferences have since been inscribed in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register.
The Group survived both World Wars, thanks to its family shareholder base and jealously guarded manufacturing secrets.
Survival through two world wars was no small feat for a company with operations across nations on opposing sides. But the closely held family ownership structure—shares rarely sold to outsiders until 1967—provided stability when public markets might have forced short-term decisions.
The century from 1863 to 1963 established Solvay's character: technical excellence, global ambition, long-term thinking enabled by family control, and a genuine commitment to advancing science. These traits would prove essential in the transformation decades ahead.
III. The Transformation Decade: 2009-2015
A. The Pharma Exit & Rhodia Acquisition (2009-2011)
By 2009, Solvay had evolved far beyond soda ash. Through decades of diversification, the company had become a conglomerate with significant pharmaceutical operations. But the financial crisis forced a strategic reckoning: what was Solvay's core identity?
The answer came in September 2009, when Solvay announced the sale of its entire pharmaceutical division to Abbott Labs for €4.5 billion. The deal closed in February 2010, leaving Solvay flush with cash and facing an existential question: what next?
The answer was Rhodia.
Rhodia itself had a fascinating lineage. It was a public company founded on January 1, 1998, following the spin-off of the chemicals, fibers, and polymers activities of RhĂ´ne-Poulenc when that French giant merged with German company Hoechst to form Aventis (later absorbed by Sanofi). Rhodia brought strengths in consumer goods and automotive markets that Solvay lacked.
By the early 1950s, Solvay diversified and resumed its global expansion. The recent years witnessed other radical transformations, from the divestment of the pharmaceutical pillar to the acquisition of Rhodia and spin off of Syensqo.
Under CEO Christian Jourquin, Solvay reinvested the pharma sale proceeds into a friendly takeover of Rhodia, valued at €3.4 billion. The acquisition closed in September 2011, and the following year, Rhodia's CEO Jean-Pierre Clamadieu succeeded Jourquin at the helm of the combined company.
This was arguably Solvay's first serious foray into specialty chemicals. Rhodia served consumer goods, automotive, energy, manufacturing, and electronics markets—all areas with higher margins and more differentiated products than commodity soda ash.
B. The Cytec Acquisition: Betting Big on Composites (2015)
If Rhodia was Solvay's entry into specialty chemicals, Cytec was its commitment to becoming a world leader in advanced materials.
Solvay has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Cytec to acquire 100% of its share capital for US$ 75.25 per share in cash.
The total cash consideration will amount to US$5.5 billion, corresponding to an enterprise value of US$ 6.4 billion and representing a 2015 estimated EBITDA multiple of 14.7x and of 11.7x when considering synergies potential linked to the transaction. The transaction price per share represents a premium of 28.9% compared to the closing price of Cytec.
This was the largest acquisition in Solvay's history, necessitating the first capital increase since the company went public in 1967. The financing of the acquisition is nearly completed. It consists of the issuance of around €4.7 billion senior and hybrid bonds and the ongoing € 1.5 billion right issue.
Cytec's history matters for understanding what Solvay was buying. Cytec was formed in 1993 when it was spun off from American Cyanamid Co., a U.S. industrial conglomerate that as recently as the 1980s was one of America's 100 largest manufacturers. American Cyanamid once owned such brand names as Formica, Centrum, Old Spice and Pine-Sol.
By 2015, Cytec had streamlined itself into a focused advanced materials company. It had spun off its phenolic and coatings business as Allnex in 2013, leaving a lean operation with approximately $2 billion in annual sales. Composite materials represent two-thirds of Cytec's $2 billion in annual sales. Cytec's primary market is in aerospace composites, but the companies expect to work on new applications for lightweight automotive composites, thanks to Solvay's strong position with automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers.
Headquartered in New Jersey with 4,600 employees across the globe, Cytec generated sales of US$ 2.0 billion and a 20% REBITDA margin in 2014. It sources almost half of its sales from North America, nearly a third from EMEA and the remainder from Asia Pacific and Latin America.
The strategic rationale was clear. "The proposed acquisition of Cytec marks a major step change in Solvay's portfolio upgrade," says Solvay CEO Jean-Pierre Clamadieu. It is a unique opportunity for Solvay to supply advanced materials to aerospace and automotive manufactures to make their vehicles lighter.
Mike Radossich is appointed President of this GBU, which will form part of the Advanced Formulations segment. Solvay fully expects to generate a minimum of 100 million euros in annual synergies within three years after the acquisition. That appointment would prove prophetic a decade later.
"Cytec represents a decisive milestone in Solvay's transformation and opens up new horizons for growth and innovation. Solvay is now a leading provider of lightweighting materials for the aerospace industry," said Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, CEO of Solvay.
The underlying thesis was compellingly simple: composites were replacing metal in vehicles of all kinds to improve fuel efficiency. Carbon fiber materials were going into revolutionary products like the all-electric BMW i3. As environmental regulations tightened worldwide, lightweighting would only become more important.
IV. The G.R.O.W. Strategy & Ilham Kadri Era (2019-2023)
In 2019, Solvay made a choice that would define its next chapter: appointing Ilham Kadri as CEO. She was one of only a handful of female CEOs in the global chemical industry—and she brought a unique perspective born of her own journey through the sector.
Kadri holds a PhD in polymer chemistry and had worked at an extraordinary range of companies: Dow, Huntsman, Sealed Air, Shell, and Diversey. But her connection to Solvay ran deeper than her resume suggested. She had been an intern at a Solvay site in France in 1989, thirty years before returning as CEO.
Her previous role at Diversey (2013-2018) demonstrated her transformation capabilities. She led the company's return to profitability, resulting in a successful divestiture to Bain Capital. That track record of turning around and repositioning businesses would prove essential at Solvay.
Kadri launched the G.R.O.W. strategy (Growth, ROI, Operational excellence, Winning with people) upon taking the helm. In less than three years, between 2019 and 2022, the company reached its ambitious targets two years ahead of schedule.
But it wasn't just about financial performance. In 2020, Solvay launched "Solvay One Planet"—a comprehensive sustainability roadmap. In 2021, "Solvay One Dignity" followed, raising the bar on social commitments. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the company took €16 million and distributed it to non-executive employees as a show of appreciation—a gesture that embodied the company's stated values.
The partnership with Bertrand Piccard's Solar Impulse project represented the company's sustainability ambitions at their most visible. Ever since Solvay became the first partner of the Solar Impulse project in 2004, its research and innovation teams have been essential in minimizing the weight of the plane through Solvay's unique and leading expertise in ultra-strong, ultra-light materials and in maximizing the energy storage of its batteries.
Between 2004 and 2016 Solvay has been a primary sponsor of the Solar Impulse project, led by Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg. The goal was to build an airplane that could fly around the world, day and night, using only solar energy.
Solvay was Solar Impulse's first technological partner from the very beginning, back in 2004. The twelve-year partnership produced breakthrough innovations—like polymer films four times thinner than a human hair—that demonstrated Solvay's R&D capabilities while building a public narrative around sustainability.
But the most consequential decision of Kadri's tenure was yet to come: the recognition that Solvay's conglomerate structure was holding back both its commodity and specialty businesses.
V. The "Power of 2" Split: Creating Syensqo (2022-2023)
A. The Strategic Rationale
In 2022, Solvay announced its intention to separate into two independent, publicly listed companies. The logic was straightforward: having both commodity and specialty chemicals businesses under one roof is not how the modern chemical industry works. It's all about pure plays.
Solvay retained its essential chemistry activities and employs 9,000 people and generates an annual turnover of €4.88 billion. The aim of the separation was to provide each company with the independence and flexibility to pursue distinct strategies.
The commodity chemicals business—soda ash, hydrogen peroxide, and related products—faces different dynamics than specialty materials. Commodity chemicals compete largely on cost, scale, and efficiency. They're capital-intensive, cyclical, and face constant pressure from low-cost producers. Specialty chemicals, by contrast, compete on innovation, technical service, and application-specific performance. They command higher margins but require heavier R&D spending and closer customer relationships.
Trying to optimize both under one roof creates inevitable tensions. Capital allocation decisions pit efficiency investments against growth opportunities. Talent with specialty-company mindsets finds themselves alongside commodity-focused colleagues. Investors struggle to value the combined entity appropriately.
The split Kadri engineered created the specialty chemical company she would lead (Syensqo) and a somewhat smaller commodity chemical maker that kept the Solvay name.
B. The Separation Mechanics
On December 8, 2023, shareholders approved the plan to spin off Solvay into two independent, publicly listed companies.
The separation became effective on December 11, 2023, with shares listed on Euronext Brussels and Euronext Paris. Syensqo's shares opened at €90, resulting in a market capitalization of approximately €9.5 billion—the third largest listing ever on Euronext Brussels.
The newly formed company had approximately $8.5 billion in annual sales and 13,000 employees. But the split came with significant costs. The "greatest surprise" from details Solvay shared about the separation was the expense of dividing the businesses, with restructuring and pension costs ranging from $320 million to $430 million.
One critical detail: all environmental liabilities related to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) remained with Syensqo. This decision would prove consequential almost immediately.
C. The Leadership Split
The traditional chemical activities, such as soda, hydrogen peroxide and adhesives, will continue under the Solvay name and will be led by Philippe Kehren. The other activities, such as plastics for electronics and rechargeable batteries, have been transferred to a new company called Syensqo, with Ilham Kadri as chairman.
Kadri's choice to lead the specialty company—larger, arguably more dynamic, with exposure to megatrends like electrification and lightweighting—made strategic sense. But she maintained an emotional connection to both entities. "I feel like a mother who got two babies," she said at the time.
VI. Syensqo Today: Business Deep Dive
A. Business Segments & Products
Syensqo operates through two primary segments: Materials and Consumer & Resources (also called Performance & Care in recent reporting).
The Materials segment generates the majority of revenue, consisting of a high-performance polymers platform coupled with a leading composites business. These products mainly serve automotive, aerospace & defense, and electronics markets.
The broader portfolio includes specialty polymers, composites, surfactants, aroma products, technology solutions, and oil & gas applications. Growth platforms focus on four key areas: battery materials, green hydrogen, thermoplastic composites, and renewable materials/biotechnology.
One business stands out as particularly unusual for a specialty chemicals company: Fluoropolymers are materials that are essential for electric vehicle batteries, hybrid engines, hydrogen applications, renewable energy installations, semiconductor manufacturing, medical devices, and more. Aroma Performance makes Syensqo the world's largest integrated producer of synthetic and natural vanillin and a global leader in the hydroquinone market—products that end up in everything from food flavoring to photography chemicals.
B. Key Products & Technologies
The crown jewel of Syensqo's product portfolio is Solef® PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride). Thanks to PVDF, a high-performance thermoplastic used as a lithium-ion binder and separator coating in batteries. More specifically, the Augusta site will produce Solef®, Syensqo's signature PVDF product, which enables electric vehicles to go farther on each charge. It extends battery life and improves battery safety.
"Our binders are the glue that holds the cathode together," explains Mike Finelli, Syensqo's Chief Technology & Innovation Officer. "And our technology can adapt to any type of chemistry: both lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries, as well as the upcoming solid state batteries."
Syensqo holds a unique position in PVDF production. The company is the only producer with both suspension and emulsion processing capabilities, offering homopolymers and copolymers in powders, pellets, and latex emulsions. This versatility matters because different battery applications require different material forms.
The company also boasts over 60 years of experience in UV stabilization of polymers (from the Cytec heritage) and 50 years of aerospace technology expertise with a comprehensive product portfolio for commercial and defense applications.
C. Geographic Footprint
The Americas represents Syensqo's largest region—more than 40% of revenues and employees, and more than half of the industrial footprint. The United States alone accounts for nearly $2.7 billion in sales, with nearly 5,000 employees across 34 industrial sites and three research and innovation centers.
Globally, the company operates 62 industrial sites and 12 major R&D centers, employing 13,000 people across 30 countries. The company already owns more than 1,800 patent families across the entire portfolio.
The heavy Americas weighting reflects both historical acquisitions (Cytec was U.S.-based) and strategic intent: major future growth investments are expected in this region.
VII. Growth Platforms & Future Bets
A. EV Batteries & PVDF
The centerpiece of Syensqo's growth strategy is a new PVDF facility in Augusta, Georgia, positioned within America's emerging "Battery Belt."
Syensqo and the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains finalized their agreement for a $178 million grant to Syensqo to help build a facility at its site in Augusta, GA to manufacture battery-grade PVDF, which is used as a lithium-ion binder and separator coating in electric vehicle batteries.
When complete, the site will be the largest PVDF production facility in North America, supplying the growing needs of domestic energy storage markets. A significant milestone in Syensqo's global electrification strategy, this facility will help create battery materials needed to unlock economy-wide electrification and electric vehicle adoption.
When production starts, no earlier than 2027, Syensqo intends to make enough PVDF to supply more than 5 million EV batteries per year — nearly half of North America's projected demand, according to a company statement.
The grant was awarded as part of the U.S. Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which aims to expand domestic manufacturing of EV batteries and the electrical grid.
At full capacity, the facility is projected to manufacture sufficient PVDF for over 5 million EV batteries annually, covering 45 percent of the anticipated PVDF demand by 2030.
The demand picture for PVDF is striking. Six years ago, less than 10% of PVDF global production was for batteries, with the rest used for pipes, cable coatings, electronics and other uses. Today, more than 40% of PVDF manufactured is used in EV batteries. And by 2028, global production of PVDF is expected to double, JP Morgan data show.
The Augusta facility is part of a joint venture between Syensqo and Orbia. In combination, Orbia's raw material assets and production expertise and Syensqo's Solef® PVDF will ensure a consistent supply of a superior, high-quality, and consistent PVDF product that contributes to performance and battery longevity.
CEO Kadri noted that Syensqo could time construction and expansion to align with market growth—providing optionality rather than committing to fixed capacity that might not match demand.
B. Aerospace & Composites
Aerospace remains a core business inherited from Cytec. Syensqo scientists and engineers help transform commercial aviation through lightweighting materials, reducing fuel consumption and improving energy efficiency.
However, this segment has faced headwinds. Orders from Boeing, a key customer for specialty polymers, slipped in recent years as the plane builder navigated safety concerns related to its 737 Max aircraft. Revenue from Composite Materials saw increased sales to Airbus, COMAC (China's commercial aircraft manufacturer), and Space & Defense applications, helping offset lower Boeing volumes.
Nevertheless, strong underlying demand in both civil aerospace and space & defence applications is expected to support strong growth in Composite Materials in 2026 and beyond. Destocking at a major civil aerospace customer is expected to continue throughout 2025.
C. Green Hydrogen & Climate Impulse
Climate Impulse plans to complete in 2028 the first non-stop round-the-world-flight in a green hydrogen powered airplane, with science company Syensqo as main partner.
Led by Swiss explorer Bertrand Piccard and engineer-pilot Raphaël Dinelli, this global expedition, expected to take flight in 2028, will be powered entirely by green hydrogen and produce zero CO₂ emissions. Syensqo is the main technology partner of Climate Impulse.
This partnership continues the relationship with the Piccard family that began with Solar Impulse. Syensqo (formerly part of Solvay) was the first and main technological partner to team up with Bertrand Piccard nearly 20 years ago with the Solar Impulse flight. This time again, Syensqo will put its extensive expertise and innovation power at the service of the adventure. Syensqo's composite materials, films and adhesives will be crucial to the manufacturing of the entire structure of the hydrogen aircraft.
Climate Impulse represents a technological breakthrough. Beside the production of green hydrogen from renewable energies, and its use through fuel cells to feed electric motors, the major challenge lies in maintaining liquid hydrogen at -253°C during an estimated nine days of flight. This will require revolutionary innovations in the creation of adapted thermal tanks.
D. AI & Digital Transformation
At Syensqo, the focus remains heavily on R&D, and Kadri's push for scientific success increasingly involves exploiting artificial intelligence. The company launched a basic AI system only about a year ago, and three months later—in partnership with Microsoft—introduced SyGPT, an intracompany chatbot designed to accelerate research and operational efficiency.
The company opened its first AI lab in Morocco, focusing on next-generation AI technologies for chemistry and material science.
VIII. Recent Challenges & Strategic Pivots (2024-2025)
A. Financial Performance
Gross profit of €2.2 billion included net pricing impact of €-97 million, resulting in gross margin of 33.8%; Underlying EBITDA of €1.4 billion, in-line with expectations; EBITDA margin of 21.5%.
For 2024, the company achieved underlying EBITDA of €1.41 billion against a backdrop of macroeconomic softness. Profit attributable to shareholders was €553 million, resulting in underlying earnings per share of €5.28.
Increased shareholder returns: €300 million share buyback program announced at the end of Q3; Dividend for 2024 of €1.62 (payout ratio of 31%).
More recent results show continued pressure. Net sales of €1.52 billion impacted by unfavourable year-on-year foreign exchange movements (-5%), lower volumes (-1%); Strong year-on-year growth in Technology Solutions; Gross profit of €484 million decreased by 15% year-on-year, primarily driven by lower volumes and unfavorable foreign exchange movements.
Underlying EBITDA of €326 million decreased by 10% year-on-year organically, primarily due to lower underlying EBITDA in Specialty Polymers and Novecare partially offset by structural cost savings; On a sequential basis, underlying EBITDA decreased by 3%; Underlying EBITDA margin remains resilient, expanded 40 basis points sequentially to 21.5%.
B. Portfolio Reshaping
"2025 will also see us continue to assess options to accelerate value creation, including through divestments, to become an even more focused specialty company. Having already determined that we will divest the Oil & Gas business, we now plan to do the same with Aroma."
Agreement to divest the Oil & Gas business unit for an enterprise value of €135 million, or c.7x EV/EBITDA.
These divestitures represent the continued refinement of Syensqo's portfolio toward a "pure play specialty" identity. The Oil & Gas and Aroma businesses, while profitable, don't fit the core thesis around growth platforms in electrification, aerospace, and sustainable materials.
C. Operational Challenges
Barely a year after Syensqo launched, management felt the need to begin restructuring involving job cuts. A major challenge has been high production costs in Europe combined with soft demand in specialty chemical markets there.
Overall, we expect flattish volumes in 2025. This includes the combined impact of approximately €80 million in Electronics, driven by a design change in a customer program, and in Aerospace, as a result of strike action at a major customer and its related impact on demand in the first half of the year.
We continue to benefit from cost saving initiatives and are accelerating initiatives to further strengthen our foundations for longer-term growth, targeting more than €200 million of run rate savings by the end of 2026.
D. PFAS Liabilities
The environmental liabilities Syensqo inherited in the split represent one of its most significant overhangs.
In June 2023, the Company (at that time still Solvay) reached an agreement with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) regarding PFAS related claims in New Jersey. The agreement resolved NJDEP's litigation against the Company without admission of liability. The settlement included commitments to complete remediation activities that the Company began voluntarily, upon learning of detections of PFAS in the area, in 2013, and the Company has agreed to establish a remedial funding source in the amount of $214 million to fund those activities.
Under the terms of the agreement, Solvay will pay $75 million to NJDEP for Natural Resource Damages and $100 million to fund NJDEP PFAS remediation projects in areas of New Jersey near the company's West Deptford site. The settlement includes commitments for Solvay to complete remediation activities. Solvay has agreed to establish a remedial funding source in the amount of $214 million.
Underlying Free Cash Flow in the range of €400 million and €500 million, excluding the previously announced $180 million PFAS payment to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which was made in April 2024. This €167 million payment significantly impacted 2024 cash flows.
The company has been working to address PFAS concerns in its manufacturing processes. These technologies use a new polymerization process that does not require the use of fluorosurfactant process aids from the PFAS family of compounds. At Syensqo, we are proud to produce a vast majority of our fluoropolymers without the use of fluorosurfactants. Guided by our sustainability roadmap, we quadrupled our investment in R&I since 2019 to invent a new polymerization process. Syensqo's goal is to phase out the use of fluorosurfactants globally.
E. Leadership Transition
Syensqo announced that Dr. Ilham Kadri will step down as its Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2026. Mike Radossich, current President of Syensqo's Performance & Care and Other Solutions segments, will succeed her.
Mike Radossich is an accomplished industry leader with a successful track record in transforming complex businesses and delivering growth and operational efficiency at global scale. He has worked at Syensqo and its predecessor companies for more than 30 years and currently serves as President of the company's Performance & Care and Other Solutions segments, responsible for overseeing four global business units that generated €2.8 billion in net sales in 2024. At Solvay Group – from which Syensqo was spun-off in December 2023 – he led turnaround efforts for the Novecare Business Unit.
Radossich joined the Group from Cytec Industries in 2015, following its acquisition. This means the next CEO has deep institutional knowledge spanning the critical Cytec integration, the portfolio transformation, and the Solvay separation.
Ilham is credited with transforming a 160-year-old industrial group, turning Solvay's returns to double digit levels. She revolutionised how we do business and her focus has always been on how to generate profitable growth while creating a strong purpose-built culture for our people.
From 2026 she will remain with the company as a special advisor to ensure a smooth transition of leadership.
F. US Dual Listing
The Board of Directors has approved the exploration of a potential dual listing in the United States, in addition to Brussels, with potential benefits of expanding and enhancing the investor base. Given that the Americas represents 40%+ of revenues and the majority of the industrial footprint, accessing U.S. capital markets more directly makes strategic sense.
IX. Playbook: Business & Investing Lessons
Portfolio Transformation Through Disciplined M&A
Solvay's journey from soda ash commodity producer to specialty materials leader offers a masterclass in corporate portfolio transformation. The sequence was deliberate:
- Exit pharma (2009): Generate cash, simplify identity
- Acquire Rhodia (2011): Enter specialty chemicals
- Acquire Cytec (2015): Become aerospace/composites leader
- Spin off Syensqo (2023): Complete the pure-play transition
Each transaction built on the previous one. The pharma sale funded Rhodia. The Rhodia platform enabled the Cytec integration. And the combined specialty portfolio justified separation from the legacy commodity business.
The Pure-Play Thesis
Having both commodity and specialty chemicals businesses is not how the modern chemical industry works. Conglomerates struggle to optimize capital allocation, attract appropriate talent, and receive fair market valuations. The chemical sector has witnessed wave after wave of separations—from DuPont/Dow to the ongoing restructuring of BASF's portfolio.
Syensqo's creation reflects this reality. Whether the separated companies perform better independently remains to be proven, but the logic aligns with clear market preferences.
Following Megatrends vs. Manufacturing Hype
Syensqo's growth platforms—EV batteries, aerospace lightweighting, green hydrogen—align with genuine secular trends. Electrification of transportation is happening. Aircraft manufacturers continue seeking lighter materials. Hydrogen has a role in decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors.
But trend alignment doesn't guarantee execution success. EV adoption rates have moderated. Boeing's troubles impact aerospace suppliers regardless of their materials' quality. Hydrogen infrastructure deployment has lagged expectations. The difference between narrative and reality matters enormously.
X. Competitive Analysis & Investment Framework
Porter's Five Forces Assessment
Supplier Power: Moderate Syensqo requires specialized raw materials (including fluorine-containing compounds) where supplier concentration can create pricing pressure. The Orbia partnership for the Augusta facility represents an effort to secure supply.
Buyer Power: Moderate to High Key customers include aerospace giants (Boeing, Airbus), automotive OEMs, and major battery manufacturers. These are sophisticated buyers with significant negotiating leverage, though switching costs for qualified materials in safety-critical applications provide some protection.
Threat of Substitutes: Low to Moderate In many applications, Syensqo's materials lack direct substitutes. Carbon fiber composites can't simply be replaced with aluminum in aerospace applications designed around their properties. PVDF's specific characteristics in batteries make substitution difficult. However, alternative battery chemistries (solid-state, sodium-ion) could shift material requirements.
Threat of New Entry: Low The barriers to entry are substantial: decades of accumulated know-how, customer qualification processes that take years, capital-intensive manufacturing, and extensive patent portfolios (1,800+ patent families).
Competitive Rivalry: Moderate to High Syensqo competes against well-resourced chemical giants (Arkema in PVDF, Hexcel and Toray in composites) plus emerging Chinese competitors. The petition to the U.S. ITC seeking import restrictions on Chinese PVDF producers reflects real competitive pressure.
Hamilton Helmer's Seven Powers Analysis
Scale Economies: Present in manufacturing, where larger facilities can achieve lower unit costs, but limited by the specialty nature of products requiring customization.
Network Effects: Minimal. Chemical products don't benefit from network effects in the traditional sense.
Counter-Positioning: Syensqo's bet on non-fluorosurfactant PVDF production could represent counter-positioning if regulations tighten on PFAS-related processes. Incumbent methods may be unable to replicate without significant reinvestment.
Switching Costs: Significant in aerospace and automotive applications. Once a material is designed into an aircraft program, switching requires recertification and requalification—a multi-year, multi-million dollar process.
Branding: Limited direct consumer branding, but strong technical reputation matters in B2B relationships.
Cornered Resource: The 50+ years of aerospace heritage and customer relationships, combined with the extensive patent portfolio, represent accumulated advantages difficult to replicate.
Process Power: Perhaps most significant. Technologies use a new polymerization process that does not require fluorosurfactants. At Syensqo, we produce a vast majority of our fluoropolymers without fluorosurfactants. This manufacturing process advantage could prove durable if environmental regulations tighten.
Myth vs. Reality
Myth: The split created a dynamic growth company unconstrained by legacy assets. Reality: Syensqo inherited all PFAS liabilities and faces ongoing remediation costs. It also retained businesses (Oil & Gas, Aroma) that management plans to divest because they don't fit the pure-play thesis.
Myth: EV battery materials represent imminent explosive growth. Reality: The Augusta PVDF facility won't produce until 2027 at earliest, and EV adoption rates have moderated from peak optimism. Management maintains optionality on expansion timing.
Myth: Aerospace composites offer stable, predictable revenue. Reality: Boeing's manufacturing problems and related destocking created material headwinds in 2024-2025, demonstrating customer concentration risk.
Key Performance Indicators to Track
1. Materials Segment EBITDA Margin This metric captures the profitability of Syensqo's core specialty polymer and composites businesses. Management targets sustained margins above 30% in this segment despite volume fluctuations. Compression below 28% would signal competitive or cost challenges requiring attention.
2. Free Cash Flow Conversion Given capital intensity and environmental liabilities, cash generation relative to EBITDA matters more than reported earnings. The company targeted €400-500 million underlying free cash flow in 2024 excluding PFAS payments. Investors should track whether operational free cash flow consistently funds both growth investments and shareholder returns.
3. Growth Platform Revenue Mix As battery materials, green hydrogen, and thermoplastic composites scale, they should represent an increasing share of revenue. While exact percentages aren't regularly disclosed, qualitative commentary on growth platform progress versus legacy business decline rates reveals portfolio transformation progress.
Material Legal/Regulatory Overhangs
PFAS Litigation: While the New Jersey settlement resolved one major claim, PFAS-related litigation continues expanding nationwide. Additional state or federal actions could create further liability. The company's investment in non-fluorosurfactant manufacturing processes represents both risk mitigation and potential competitive advantage.
Environmental Permits for Augusta: The DOE said Syensqo went through a "rigorous merit-based selection process" before being chosen as a recipient for a PVDF plant expansion. Syensqo will have to "consider and ideally improve local environmental impacts." Community and regulatory scrutiny of chemical manufacturing facilities has intensified, and any permitting delays could impact the 2027 production timeline.
Trade Protection: Solvay and its spinoff company Syensqo argued in a petition to the U.S. ITC that import restrictions are needed to protect a PVDF thermoplastic resin plant that it's building in Augusta, using a grant of nearly $180 million from the U.S. Department of Energy. "With the DOE's help, Syensqo has invested substantial resources for domestic production." The outcome of trade actions against Chinese PVDF producers will affect competitive dynamics.
Conclusion: The Next Chapter
Syensqo enters its second year as an independent company facing a paradox. The strategic thesis is compelling: pure-play specialty materials exposure to electrification, aerospace, and sustainable chemistry megatrends. The execution challenges are real: macroeconomic headwinds, customer concentration risks, environmental liabilities, and the fundamental difficulty of proving that a 160-year-old corporate DNA can truly reinvent itself.
"It has been the privilege of my career to serve Syensqo and its exceptional people for the past seven years. Together, we raised our ambitions, navigated crises, accomplished the historic demerger with Solvay, and launched one of the industry's most innovative specialty companies. I want to express my deepest gratitude to every team member, whose dedication and belief made this transformation possible. As Syensqo steps boldly into its next chapter, I thank you for your passion, resilience, and the spirit of exploration."
The leadership transition to Mike Radossich brings continuity—a 30-year company veteran who joined through the Cytec acquisition and understands both the technical capabilities and commercial imperatives. Whether he can accelerate portfolio refinement while defending margins in a challenging environment will determine whether the split delivered on its promise.
"With Syensqo now firmly established as a specialty leader, we are fully focused on driving long-term profitable growth, improving returns and value creation. Like Ilham, I am passionate about building high-performance cultures that place our customers at the center of everything we do."
Ernest Solvay built his empire on a process innovation that displaced an entire industry. His descendants—corporate, not biological—now face a different challenge: proving that scientific heritage can translate into sustained competitive advantage in the era of electrification and decarbonization.
The archives of the Solvay Conferences remind us that bringing brilliant minds together can reshape our understanding of the universe. Whether bringing together specialty polymers experts, composites engineers, and sustainability scientists can reshape the aviation and automotive industries remains the bet Syensqo asks investors to underwrite.
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