Dow Chemical 2012 Annual Report Download - page 38

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Products
Major products by business and applications/market segments are listed below:
Business Major Products Applications/Market Segments
Dow Elastomers Elastomers, plastomers, ethylene propylene
diene monomer elastomers ("EPDMs")
Adhesives, footwear, housewares,
infrastructure, sports recreation, toys and infant
products, transportation
Dow Electrical and
Telecommunications
Wire and cable insulation, semiconductive and
jacketing compound solutions, bio-based
plasticizers
Building and construction, electrical
transmission and distribution infrastructure,
telecommunications infrastructure
Dow Hygiene and
Medical
Acrylics, polyethylene, low-density
polyethylene, polyolefin emulsions, polyolefin
plastomers
Medical end-use, personal care products
Dow Performance
Packaging
Linear low-density polethylene, low-density
polyethylene, high-density polyethylene
Adhesives, flexible packaging for food and
beverages; rigid packaging for food, household
goods and industrial products; sealants;
unitization films; and water, natural gas and
irrigation pipe
The segment strategically locates its polyethylene production units near its hydrocarbon cracking facilities to enable
back-integration into feedstocks. As a result, the segment sources ethylene from internally produced sources and propylene
from both internal and external sources. In 2012, the Performance Plastics segment consumed 69 percent of Dow's internal
ethylene production.
Competition
Competition for the Performance Plastics segment includes chemical divisions of major national and international oil
companies, which provide competition in the United States and abroad. Dow competes worldwide on the basis of product
quality, product supply, technology, price and customer service. Performance Plastics stands to gain considerably from
favorable shale gas dynamics in the United States, which will further strengthen the Company's low-cost position and
enhance global cost competitiveness. Key competitors include ExxonMobil, INEOS, LyondellBasell, Mitsui and SABIC.
Joint Ventures
Joint ventures play an integral role within the Performance Plastics segment by dampening earnings cyclicality and
improving earnings growth. Key joint ventures are listed below:
Aligned 100 percent with Performance Plastics
• Univation Technologies, LLC - a United States-based company that develops, markets and licenses the
UNIPOL™ polyethylene process technology and related catalysts, including metallocene catalysts; owned 50
percent by the Company.
Performance Plastics includes a portion of the results of:
• EQUATE Petrochemicals Company K.S.C. - a Kuwait-based company that manufactures ethylene, polyethylene
and ethylene glycol; owned 42.5 percent by the Company.
• The Kuwait Olefins Company K.S.C. - a Kuwait-based company that manufactures ethylene and ethylene glycol;
owned 42.5 percent by the Company.
• The SCG-Dow Group consists of Siam Polyethylene Company Limited - owned 50 percent; Siam Polystyrene
Company Limited - owned 50 percent; Siam Styrene Monomer Co., Ltd. - owned 50 percent; and Siam Synthetic
Latex Company Limited - owned 50 percent. These Thailand-based companies manufacture polyethylene,
polystyrene, styrene and latex.
• Sadara Chemical Company - a development-stage Saudi Arabian company that will manufacture chlorine,
ethylene and propylene for internal consumption and will produce and market high-value added chemical
products and performance plastics; owned 35 percent by the Company.
Divestitures
On September 30, 2011, the Company sold its global Polypropylene business to Braskem SA. The transaction did not
include Dow's Polypropylene Licensing and Catalyst business. The Polypropylene business was reported in the
Performance Plastics segment through the date of the divestiture.