Huntsman CORP - Annual Report: 2022 (Form 10-K)

HUNTSMAN CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

HUNTSMAN INTERNATIONAL LLC AND SUBSIDIARIES

2022 ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

This report includes information with respect to market share, industry conditions and forecasts that we obtained from internal industry research, publicly available information (including industry publications and surveys), and surveys and market research provided by consultants. The publicly available information and the reports, forecasts and other research provided by consultants generally state that the information contained therein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. We have not independently verified any of the data from third-party sources, nor have we ascertained the underlying economic assumptions relied upon therein. Similarly, our internal research and forecasts are based upon our management’s understanding of industry conditions, and such information has not been verified by any independent sources.

For convenience in this report, the terms “Company,” “our,” “us,” or “we” may be used to refer to Huntsman Corporation and, unless the context otherwise requires, its subsidiaries and predecessors. In this report, “Huntsman International” refers to Huntsman International LLC (our wholly-owned subsidiary) and, unless the context otherwise requires, its subsidiaries; “AAC” refers to Arabian Amines Company, our consolidated manufacturing joint venture with the Zamil Group; “HPS” refers to Huntsman Polyurethanes Shanghai Ltd. (our consolidated splitting joint venture with Shanghai Chlor-Alkali Chemical Company, Ltd); and “SLIC” refers to Shanghai Liengheng Isocyanate Investment BV (an unconsolidated manufacturing joint venture with BASF and three Chinese chemical companies).

In this report, we may use, without definition, the common names of competitors or other industry participants. We may also use the common names or abbreviations for certain chemicals or products. Many of these terms are defined in the Glossary of Chemical Terms found at the conclusion of “Part I. Item 1. Business” below.

Forward-Looking Statements

With respect to Huntsman Corporation, certain information set forth in this report contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements other than historical factual information are forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding: projections of revenue, expenses, profit, profit margins, tax rates, tax provisions, cash flows, pension and benefit obligations and funding requirements, our liquidity position or other projected financial measures; the projected impact of COVID-19 on our operations and future financial results; management’s plans and strategies for future operations, including statements relating to anticipated operating performance, cost reductions, restructuring activities, new product and service developments, competitive strengths or market position, acquisitions, divestitures, spin-offs or other distributions, strategic opportunities, securities offerings, stock repurchases, dividends and executive compensation; growth, declines and other trends in markets we sell into; new or modified laws, regulations and accounting pronouncements; outstanding claims, legal proceedings, tax audits and assessments and other contingent liabilities; foreign currency exchange rates and fluctuations in those rates; general economic and capital markets conditions; the timing of any of the foregoing; assumptions underlying any of the foregoing; and any other statements that address events or developments that we intend or believe will or may occur in the future. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “believes,” “expects,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “anticipates” or “intends” or the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy. We may also make additional forward-looking statements from time to time. All such subsequent forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, by us or on our behalf, are also expressly qualified by these cautionary statements.

All forward-looking statements, including without limitation management’s examination of historical operating trends, are based upon our current expectations and various assumptions. Our expectations, beliefs and projections are expressed in good faith and we believe there is a reasonable basis for them, but there can be no assurance that management’s expectations, beliefs and projections will result or be achieved. All forward-looking statements apply only as of the date made. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by securities and other applicable law.

There are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in or contemplated by this report. Any forward-looking statements should be considered in light of the risks set forth in “Part I. Item 1A. Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this report.

PART I

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Overview

We are a global manufacturer of diversified organic chemical products. We operate in three segments: Polyurethanes, Performance Products and Advanced Materials. Our products comprise many different chemicals and chemical formulations, which we market globally to a wide range of consumers that consist primarily of industrial and building product manufacturers. Our products are used in a broad range of applications, including those in the adhesives, aerospace, automotive, coatings and construction, construction products, durable and non-durable consumer products, electronics, insulation, packaging, power generation and refining. Many of our products offer effects such as premium insulation in homes and buildings and the light weighting of airplanes and automobiles that help conserve energy. We are a leading global producer in many of our key product lines, including MDI, amines, maleic anhydride and epoxy-based polymer formulations. Our revenues for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 were $8,023 million, $7,670 million and $5,421 million, respectively. 

Our company, a Delaware corporation, was formed in 2004 to hold the Huntsman businesses, which were founded by Jon M. Huntsman. Mr. Huntsman founded the predecessor to our Company in 1970 as a small packaging materials company. Since then, we have transformed through a series of acquisitions and divestitures and now own a global portfolio of businesses with a primary focus on improving energy efficiency. On August 9, 2022, we entered into a definitive agreement to sell our textile chemicals and dyes business (“Textile Effects Business”) to Archroma, a portfolio company of SK Capital Partners (“Archroma”), for a purchase price of $593 million in cash plus the assumption of underfunded pension liabilities, and we expect the net after tax cash proceeds to be approximately $540 million before fees and subject to certain customary purchase price adjustments as set forth in the purchase agreement. We expect the transaction to close on February 28, 2023. Beginning in the third quarter of 2022, we reported the results of our Textile Effects Business as discontinued operations for all periods presented. For more information, see “Note 4. Discontinued Operations and Business Dispositions—Discontinued Operations—Sale of Textile Effects Business” to our consolidated financial statements. On January 3, 2020, we completed the sale of our chemical intermediates businesses, which included PO/MTBE, and our surfactants businesses (collectively, “Chemical Intermediates Businesses”) to Indorama Venture Holdings L.P. (“Indorama”). For more information, see “Note 4. Discontinued Operations and Business Dispositions—Discontinued Operations—Sale of Chemical Intermediates Businesses” to our consolidated financial statements. We operate all of our businesses through Huntsman International, our wholly-owned subsidiary. Huntsman International is a Delaware limited liability company and was formed in 1999.

For information regarding significant recent developments, see “Note 1. General—Recent Developments” to our consolidated financial statements.

Our principal executive offices are located at 10003 Woodloch Forest Drive, The Woodlands, Texas 77380, and our telephone number at that location is (281) 719-6000.

Our Products

The following table identifies the key products, principal end markets and applications, representative customers, raw materials and representative competitors of each of our business segments:

Polyurethanes

General

We are a leading global manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of polyurethane chemicals, including MDI products, polyols and TPU (each discussed in more detail below under “—Products and Markets”). Polyurethane chemicals are used to produce rigid and flexible foams, as well as coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers. We focus on the higher-margin, higher-growth markets for specialty MDI-based polyurethane systems and polyurethane component molecules. Volume growth in our Polyurethanes segment has been driven primarily by global economic activity and the continued substitution of MDI-based products for other materials across a broad range of applications. We operate three major polyurethane manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Europe and China. We also operate 28 strategically located downstream facilities, of which 21 are polyurethane formulation facilities, commonly referred to in the chemical industry as “systems houses”. Our systems houses are located in close proximity to our customers worldwide, which enables us to focus on customer support, technical service and a differentiated product offering. We also operate two specialty polyester polyol manufacturing facilities focused on the insulation market, three downstream TPU manufacturing facilities in the United States (“U.S.”), Europe and China and two spray foam manufacturing sites located in the U.S. and Canada.

Our customers produce polyurethane-based products through the combination of an isocyanate, such as MDI, with polyols, which are derived largely from PO and EO. We are able to produce over 2,500 distinct MDI-based polyurethane products by modifying the MDI molecule through varying the proportion and type of polyol used and by introducing other chemical additives to our MDI formulations. As a result, polyurethane products, especially those derived from MDI, are continuing to replace traditional products in a wide range of end-use markets, including insulation in construction and cold chain, cushioning for automotive and furniture, coatings, adhesives, wood binders for construction and furniture, footwear and other specialized engineering applications.

We operate a world-scale integrated polyurethane formulations facility and a world-scale research and development campus in China to service our customers in the critical Chinese market, the largest MDI market in the world, and we will support the long-term demand growth that we believe this region will continue to experience. Additionally, we entered into an agreement with Sinopec to form a joint venture to build and operate a world-scale PO/MTBE plant in Nanjing, China utilizing proprietary PO/MTBE manufacturing technology. PO is used in the manufacturing of polyurethane systems and MTBE is an oxygenate used in gasoline. We own a 49% interest in the joint venture and account for our interest in the joint venture as an equity method investment.

In May 2020, we rebranded our leading spray polyurethane foam (“SPF”) business as Huntsman Building Solutions (“HBS”). HBS was formed through our acquisitions of Icynene-Lapolla, a leading North American manufacturer and distributor of SPF insulation systems for residential and commercial applications, in 2020 (“Icynene-Lapolla Acquisition”) and Demilec (USA) Inc. and Demilec Inc. in 2018. Our SPF products offer significant environmental benefits, as our proprietary manufacturing process transforms low quality PET plastic bottles into highly effective energy-saving polyurethane insulation. HBS offers attractive growth potential as energy efficiency standards and requirements increase globally and continue to shift towards a more green economy.

Products and Markets

MDI is used primarily in rigid foam applications and in a wide variety of customized, higher-value flexible foam as well as coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers. Polyols, including polyether and polyester polyols, are used in conjunction with MDI in rigid foam, flexible foam and other non-foam applications. The following chart illustrates the range of product types and end uses for polyurethane chemicals. We produce MDI, polyols and TPU products and do not produce TDI products.

 

Polyurethane chemicals are sold to customers who combine the chemicals to produce polyurethane-based products. Customers will use either polyurethane component molecules produced for mass sales or polyurethane systems tailored to specific requirements. By varying the blend, additives and specifications of the polyurethane chemicals, manufacturers are able to develop and produce a breadth and variety of polyurethane-based products.

MDI. MDI has grown substantially over the past three decades, increasing by a factor of approximately 5-6% CAGR, well in excess of global GDP. MDI has a substantially larger market size and a higher growth rate than other polyurethane isocyanates. This is primarily because MDI can be used to make polyurethanes with a broader range of properties and can therefore be used in a wider range of applications. We believe that MDI and formulated MDI systems, which combine MDI and polyols, will continue to grow at approximately double the rate of global GDP driven by the mega trends of energy management, food preservation, demographics and urbanization/transportation. MDI offers key products benefits of energy efficiency, comfort and durability aligned with these megatrends. We believe that MDI and formulated MDI systems will continue to substitute for alternative materials, such as fiberglass in insulation, phenol formaldehyde in wood binders and TDI in automotive and furniture. Specialty cushioning and insulation applications, thermoplastic polyurethanes and adhesives and coatings will further contribute to the continued growth of MDI. MDI experiences some seasonality in its sales reflecting its exposure to seasonal construction-related end markets such as insulation and composite wood products. Sales generally peak during the spring and summer months in the northern hemisphere, resulting in greater sales volumes during the second and third quarters of the year.

Polyols. Polyols are combined with MDI and other isocyanates to create a broad spectrum of formulated polyurethane systems. Demand for specialty polyols has been growing at approximately the same rate at which MDI consumption has grown.

TPU. TPU is a high-quality, fully formulated thermal plastic derived from the reaction of MDI or an aliphatic isocyanate with polyols to produce unique qualities such as durability, flexibility, strength, abrasion-resistance, shock absorbency and chemical resistance. We can tailor the performance characteristics of TPU to help meet the specific requirements of our customers. TPU is used in injection molding and small components for the automotive and footwear industries. It is also extruded into films for apparel, wires and cables for industrial use and in a wide variety of applications in the coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers markets.

Other. 

Other sales consist primarily of aniline, benzene, nitrobenzene and other co-products, which all are used primarily to manufacture MDI. The majority of our aniline is consumed internally with some sold to third parties. We believe that the lack of a significant spot market for aniline means that in order to remain competitive, MDI manufacturers must either be integrated with an aniline manufacturing facility or have long-term, cost-competitive aniline supply contracts.

Our strategy is focused on growing our differentiated product offering (specialty MDI and polyols, formulated MDI-based systems and TPU), which requires a greater emphasis on formulating capability and technical solutions to help our downstream customers meet the desired effect required in their applications. The diagram below provides an overview of how we leverage our technology and experience with the MDI splitter by transforming crude MDI into differentiated higher value systems and markets.

Sales and Marketing

We market our polyurethane chemicals to over 6,500 customers in more than 90 countries. Our sales, marketing and technical resources are organized to support major regional markets and key end-use markets, some of which require a coordinated global approach, such as key accounts across the automotive and elastomers markets. These regional key end-use markets include our insulation businesses, footwear, furniture and other construction and industrial markets. We sell both directly and indirectly to customers, the latter via a network of distributors and agents who in turn sell our products to customers who cannot be served as cost effectively by our internal sales groups.

We provide a wide variety of polyurethane solutions as components (i.e., the isocyanate or the polyol) or in the form of “systems”, in which we provide the total isocyanate and polyol formulation to our customers. Our ability to deliver a range of polyurethane solutions and technical support, which can be tailored for the needs of our customers, is critical to our long-term success. We have strategically located our downstream polyurethane systems houses close to our customers, enabling us to focus on customer support and technical service. We believe this customer support and technical service system contributes to customer retention and also provides opportunities for identifying further product and service needs of customers.

Our strategy is to grow the capabilities of our downstream facilities both organically and inorganically. As a result, we have made a number of “bolt-on” acquisitions in recent years to expand our downstream footprint and align with our strategic intent. Along with this, we continuously evaluate our global footprint to better utilize our assets and systems houses while providing strong customer support and technical service.

We believe that the extensive market knowledge and industry experience of our sales teams and technical experts, in combination with our strong emphasis on customer relationships, have facilitated our ability to establish and maintain long-term customer supply positions. Our sales strategy is to continue to increase sales to existing customers and to attract new customers by providing innovative solutions, quality products, reliable supply, competitive prices and superior customer service.

Manufacturing and Operations

Our world-scale MDI production facilities are located in Geismar, Louisiana; Rotterdam, The Netherlands; and through our joint ventures in Caojing, China. These facilities receive aniline, which is a primary material used in the production of MDI, from our facilities located in Geismar, Louisiana; Wilton, U.K.; and Caojing, China. We believe that this relative scale and product integration of our large facilities is necessary to provide cost competitiveness in MDI production. At our Geismar, Rotterdam and Caojing facilities we utilize sophisticated proprietary technology to produce MDI. This technology contributes to our position as a low-cost MDI producer. The following table sets forth the annual production capacity of polyurethane chemicals at select polyurethanes facilities: 

(1)    Represents our share of capacity from SLIC.

(2)    Represents our approximately 78% share of capacity under our consolidated Rubicon LLC manufacturing joint venture with Lanxess AG.

(3)    Primarily consumed internally in the production of MDI.

Key Joint Ventures

Rubicon Joint Venture. Lanxess AG (“Lanxess”) is our joint venture partner in Rubicon LLC (“Rubicon”), which owns aniline, nitrobenzene and DPA manufacturing facilities in Geismar, Louisiana. We are entitled to approximately 78% of the nitrobenzene and aniline production capacity of Rubicon, and Lanxess is entitled to 100% of the DPA production. In addition to operating the joint venture’s aniline, nitrobenzene and DPA facilities, Rubicon operates our wholly-owned MDI, polyol and maleic anhydride facilities at Geismar and is responsible for providing other auxiliary services to the entire Geismar complex. As a result of this joint venture, we are able to achieve greater scale and lower costs for our products than we would otherwise have been able to obtain. Rubicon is consolidated in our financial statements.

Chinese MDI Joint Ventures. We are involved in two related joint ventures which operate MDI production facilities in Caojing, China. SLIC, our manufacturing joint venture with BASF and three Chinese chemical companies, produces MNB, aniline and crude MDI. We effectively own 35% of SLIC and account for our investment under the equity method. HPS, our splitting joint venture with Shanghai Chlor-Alkali Chemical Company, Ltd, manufactures pure MDI, polymeric MDI, MDI variants and formulated MDI systems. We own 70% of HPS and it is consolidated in our financial statements. These projects have been funded by a combination of equity invested by the joint venture partners and borrowed funds. 

Chinese PO/MTBE Joint Venture. In November 2012, we entered into an agreement to form a joint venture with Sinopec. The joint venture involved the construction and operation of a PO/MTBE facility in China. Under the joint venture agreement, we hold a 49% interest in the joint venture and Sinopec holds a 51% interest. We account for this investment under the equity method.

Raw Materials

The primary raw materials for MDI-based polyurethane chemicals are benzene and PO. Benzene is a widely available commodity that we purchase from third parties to manufacture nitrobenzene and aniline, almost all of which we then use to produce MDI. Historically, benzene has been the largest component of our raw material costs. Over the past year, the cost of natural gas-related raw materials in Europe have risen significantly.

The primary raw material used in the production of polyols is PO, which we purchase in North America and Europe. In China, the Chinese PO/MTBE joint venture supplies PO into our downstream China business. The strategic supply of PO gives us access to competitively priced PO and the opportunity to develop polyols that enhance our range of MDI products.

Competition

Our major competitors in the polyurethane chemicals market include BASF, Covestro, Dow, Lubrizol and Wanhua Chemical Group. While these competitors and others produce various types and quantities of polyurethane chemicals, we focus on MDI and MDI-based formulated polyurethane systems. Our downstream business is fragmented with different competitors in various markets and regions. Our competitors in downstream markets include Carlisle Construction Materials, Coim and Lubrizol. Our polyurethane chemicals business competes in two basic ways: (1) where price is the dominant element of competition, our polyurethane chemicals business differentiates itself by its high level of customer support, including cooperation on technical and safety matters; and (2) elsewhere, we compete on the basis of product performance, our ability to react quickly to changing customer needs and providing customers with innovative solutions to their needs.

Performance Products

General

Our Performance Products segment has leading global positions in the manufacture and sale of amines and maleic anhydride and serves a wide variety of consumer and industrial end markets. Our Performance Products segment is organized by region and product family: amines and maleic anhydride.

We produce a wide range of amines, many of which are sold into diversified markets such as epoxy curing agents, oil exploration and production, agrochemicals, and fuel and lubricant additives. We believe we are the largest global producer of polyetheramines, one of the largest producers of 2-(2-amino ethoxy) ethanol, sold under our DGA^™ brand, the largest global producer making the full range of ethyleneamines, the second largest producer of morpholine and a leading global producer of low emission polyurethane catalysts. We are the only producer and largest supplier of propylene carbonate and ethylene carbonate in North America. Many of the markets for these products have growth rates in excess of global GDP.

We believe we are the largest producer of maleic anhydride outside of China and the second largest globally. Maleic anhydride is a highly versatile chemical intermediate used for products sold into construction and infrastructure, marine and fuel additives, among other applications. Notably, maleic anhydride is used to produce unsaturated polyester resins (UPRs), which are mainly used in the production of fiberglass reinforced resins. Maleic anhydride is also used in the production of lubricants, food additives and artificial sweeteners.

We produce a variety of products at 10 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Products and Markets

Amines. Amines are a family of intermediate chemicals that are produced by reacting ammonia, or an alkylamine, with various ethylene and propylene derivatives. Generally, amines are valued for their properties as a reactive agent, emulsifier, dispersant, solvent or corrosion inhibitor. Growth in demand for amines is highly correlated with GDP growth. However, certain segments of the amines market, such as polyetheramines, have historically grown at rates in excess of GDP growth due to new product development, technical innovation and end-use substitution. As amines are generally sold based upon the performance characteristics that they provide to customer-specific end-use applications, pricing does not generally fluctuate directly with movements in underlying raw materials. Our amines business is organized around the following product groups:

Polyetheramines are produced by reacting polyol with ammonia. They provide sophisticated performance characteristics as an additive in the manufacture of highly customized epoxy formulations, enabling customers to penetrate new markets and substitute for traditional curing materials.

Our ethyleneamines are manufactured by reacting EDC and caustic soda with ammonia to produce a range of various ethyleneamines homologues having different molecular weights. Most other producers utilize a reductive amination process, which yields a light slate of ethyleneamines. We believe our heavier slate of homologues allows access to a greater range of markets.

Our amines are used in a wide variety of mainly industrial applications, including composites, paints and coatings, polyurethane insulation and flexible foams, fuel and lubricant additives, and solvents. Our key amines customers include Afton, Bayer, Chevron Oronite, DuPont, Evonik, Hexion, Infineum, Ingevity, Lubrizol, Olin, PPG, Quadra and Sherwin-Williams.

Maleic Anhydride. Maleic anhydride is a highly versatile chemical intermediate used for products sold into construction and infrastructure, marine and fuel additives, among other applications. Notably, maleic anhydride is used to produce UPRs, which are mainly used in the production of fiberglass reinforced resins. Maleic anhydride is also used in the production of lubricants, food additives and artificial sweeteners.

Maleic anhydride is produced by oxidizing either benzene or normal butane through the use of a catalyst. Our maleic anhydride technology is a proprietary fixed bed butane-based process with a solvent recovery and refining system. We believe that our process is superior in the areas of feedstock and energy efficiency and solvent recovery. The maleic anhydride-based route to BDO manufacture is currently the preferred process technology and is favored over the other routes, which utilize PO, butadiene or acetylene as feedstocks. As a result, the growth in demand for BDO supports growing demand for our maleic anhydride technology. Generally, changes in price have resulted from a combination of changes in industry capacity utilization and underlying raw material costs.

We license our maleic anhydride technology and other technologies worldwide. Revenue from licensing comes from new plant commissioning, as well as current plant retrofits. Our licensing group also supports licensing efforts for our other segments.

Our key maleic anhydride customers include Andercol, Chevron Oronite, Ingevity, Lubrizol, MFG Chemical, Polynt-Reichhold and Primary Products.

Sales and Marketing

We sell approximately 250 products to over 950 customers globally through our regional sales and marketing organizations, which have extensive market knowledge, considerable chemical industry experience and well-established customer relationships.

In more specialty products for certain markets (e.g., lubricants, coatings, construction, agrochemicals, oilfield, automotive, gas treating and insulation), our marketing efforts are focused on how our product offerings perform in certain customer applications. We believe that this approach enhances the value of our product offerings and creates opportunities for ongoing differentiation in our development activities with our customers.

We provide extensive pre- and post-sales technical service support to our customers where our technical service professionals work closely with our research and development functions to tailor our product offerings to meet our customers unique and changing requirements. These technical service professionals interact closely with our marketing managers and business leadership teams to help guide future offerings and market approach strategies. In addition to our focused direct sales efforts, we maintain an extensive global network of distributors and agents that also sell our products. These distributors and agents typically promote our products to smaller end-use customers who cannot be served cost effectively by our direct sales forces.

Manufacturing and Operations

Our Performance Products segment has the capacity to produce a variety of products at 10 manufacturing locations in North America, EAME and APAC. These production capacities are as follows:

Our amines facilities are located globally. These facilities have a competitive cost base and use modern manufacturing units that allow for flexibility in production capabilities and technical innovation.

A number of our facilities are located within large integrated petrochemical manufacturing complexes. We believe this results in greater scale and lower costs for our products than we would be able to obtain if these facilities were stand-alone operations. These include our maleic anhydride facilities in Pensacola, Florida, Geismar, Louisiana and Moers, Germany and our ethyleneamines facility in Freeport, Texas.

Joint Venture

We consolidate the results of AAC, our 50%-owned joint venture with the Zamil Group. AAC operates an ethyleneamines manufacturing plant in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. The plant has an approximate annual capacity of 70 million pounds. We purchase and sell all of the production from this joint venture.

Raw Materials

The main raw materials used in the production of our amines are EO, PO, glycols, EDC, caustic soda, ammonia, hydrogen, methylamines and acrylonitrile. The majority of these raw materials are available from multiple sources in the merchant market at competitive prices.

Maleic anhydride is produced by the reaction of normal butane with oxygen. The principal raw material is normal butane, which is purchased pursuant to long-term contracts and delivered to our Pensacola, Florida site by barge, to our facility in Geismar, Louisiana via pipeline and to our Moers, Germany site by railcar.

Competition

There are a small number of competitors for many of our amines due to the considerable customization of product formulations, the proprietary nature of many of our product applications and manufacturing processes and the relatively high research and development and technical costs involved. Our global competitors include BASF, Delamine, Dow, Evonik, Nouryon and Tosoh. We compete primarily on the basis of product performance, new product innovation and, to a lesser extent, on the basis of price.

In our maleic anhydride market, we compete primarily on the basis of price, customer service, technical support and logistics management. Our competitors include AOC, Bartek, INEOS and Lanxess. In our maleic anhydride technology licensing market, our primary competitor is Conser. We compete primarily on the basis of technological performance and service.

Advanced Materials

General

Our Advanced Materials segment is a leading global manufacturer and marketer of technologically-advanced epoxy, phenoxy, acrylic, polyurethane, mercaptan and acrylonitrile butadiene-based polymer products. We focus on formulations and systems that are used to address customer-specific needs in a wide variety of industrial and consumer applications. Our products are used either as replacements for traditional materials or in applications where traditional materials do not meet demanding engineering specifications. For example, structural adhesives are used to replace metal rivets and advanced composites are used to replace traditional aluminum panels and other steel materials to lighten structures in aerospace, automotive and other transportation. Our Advanced Materials segment is characterized by the breadth of our product offering, our expertise in complex chemistry, our long-standing relationships with our customers, our ability to develop and adapt our technology and our applications expertise for new markets and new applications.

We operate synthesis, formulating and production facilities in North America, Europe, Asia and South America. We sell to over 1,900 customers in the following end markets: aerospace, automotive, oil and gas, liquid natural gas transport, coatings and construction, printed circuit boards, consumer, industrial and automotive electronics, consumer and industrial appliances, electrical power transmission and distribution, recreational sports equipment, medical appliances and food and beverage packaging.

Products and Markets

Aerospace. Our Advanced Materials segment is a leading global supplier of advanced, high-performance materials for the fabrication and repair of aircraft components. We supply leading aerospace companies with innovations in composites, adhesives, laminating and repair systems, alongside innovative carbon nanotube technologies.

We offer a wide range of materials to the aerospace market under the ARALDITE^®, EPIBOND^®, EPOCAST^®, URALANE^® and MIRALON^® brands. Many of these products are qualified under the specification of major aerospace original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”), complying with appropriate regulations governing large civil aircraft.

Automotive. We offer to the automotive market, including leading automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, high-end composite and adhesive formulations, specialty resins and toughening agents. Lightweight, strength, flexibility, shorter cycle time and fatigue resistance are key requirements of our industrial partners. 

Our Advanced Materials segment has a long history of delivering a wide range of solutions meeting stringent requirements for automotive electronics applications, such as high temperature and chemical resistance, frame-retardancy and excellent mechanical and dielectric properties. The strong global push for electric vehicles opens new opportunities in electric motor thermal management and battery performance enhancement with our innovative encapsulants, toughening agents and carbon materials.

Electrical Infrastructure. We are a leading global supplier of insulating materials for motors, generators, switchgears, distribution and instrument transformers, and insulators and bushings for electrical power applications. The products formulated by our Advanced Materials segment are designed to provide the electrical equipment an extended service life and meet specific industry requirements for electrical insulation in indoor and outdoor environments.

Coatings Infrastructure. We offer expertise in curing and toughening technologies and a portfolio of specialized resins and additives to the manufacturers of paints and construction materials. Our product technologies, including epoxy hardeners, phenoxy and acrylonitrile-butadiene reactive liquid polymers and high solid or water-based components, enable customers to address challenging industry requirements, such as resistance to aggressive chemicals and high temperature, adhesion to difficult substrates, excellent mechanical properties, high drying speed and easy re-coatability, low temperature and sub-zero cure and low VOC and environmental impact.

General Industry. We offer high-end adhesives and composite formulations, specialty resins, toughening agents and rubber polymers to a large variety of industrial applications, such as sport equipment, leisure and shipping boats, engineering machineries, consumer electronics, rubber consumables and the do-it-yourself market.

ARALDITE® is an important brand in high-performance adhesive technologies. We offer formulation expertise in various chemistries, including epoxies, polyurethanes, methacrylates, phenolics, mercaptan and acrylonitrile-butadiene-based polymer products. Our materials address requirements such as long open times for large area applications, fast-curing adhesives for early removal and rapid through-put, resistance to high temperature, water and chemicals, thixotropy for gap-filling or vertical applications, and toughness, impact-resistance and elasticity to cope with different thermal expansions when bonding larger structures. Our adhesives are used in a large variety of industrial applications.

Sales and Marketing

We maintain multiple routes to market to service our diverse and fragmented customer base throughout the world. These routes to market range from using our own direct sales force, distribution to mass distribution. Our direct sales force focuses on engineering solutions for our major customers who purchase significant amount of product. We use specialist distributors to augment our sales effort in niche markets and applications where we do not believe it is appropriate to develop direct sales resources. We use mass general distribution channels to sell our products into a wide range of general applications where technical expertise is less important, which reduces our overall selling expenses. We believe our use of multiple routes to market enables us to reach a broader customer base at an efficient cost.

We conduct sales activities through dedicated regional sales teams in EMEAI, Asia and the Americas. Our global customers are covered by key account managers who are familiar with the specific requirements of these customers. The management of long-standing customer relationships is critical to the sales and marketing process.

Manufacturing and Operations

We are a global business serving customers in three principal geographic regions: EAMEI, Asia and the Americas. In order to service our customers efficiently, we maintain manufacturing plants around the world with a strategy of global, regional and local manufacturing employed to optimize the level of service and minimize the cost to our customers. The following table summarizes the plants that we operate:

(1)    95%-owned and consolidated manufacturing joint venture with Guangzhou Sheng’an Package Company Limited.

Raw Materials

The principal raw materials we purchase for the manufacture of basic and advanced epoxy resins are epichlorohydrin, bisphenol A, MDA, phenol and aminophenols. We also purchase amines, polyols, isocyanates, acrylic materials, hardeners and fillers for the production of our formulated polymer systems and complex chemicals and additives. In our specialty nitrile latexes and carboxyl terminated acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer product lines, acrylonitrile and butadiene are the main raw materials purchased. For production of mercaptan curatives, we purchase polyols, epichlorohydrin and hydrogen sulfide. Raw material costs constitute a sizeable percentage of the costs for certain applications. We have supply contracts with a number of suppliers. The terms of our supply contracts vary, but in general, these contracts contain provisions that set forth the quantities of product to be supplied and purchased. Formula pricing is sometimes used if advantageous for the business.

Additionally, in our European operations, we produce some of our most important raw materials, such as BLR and its basic derivatives, which are the basic building blocks of many of our products. In the Americas and Asia, we procure BLR on the open market from a number of suppliers.

We consume certain amines produced by our Performance Products segment and isocyanates produced by our Polyurethanes segment, which we use to formulate our Advanced Materials products.

Competition

The markets in which our Advanced Materials segment competes are diverse and require an appropriate human capital and asset footprint to compete effectively. The competitive intensity, capital investment and development of proprietary technology and maintenance of product research and development are all market specific. We operate dedicated technology centers in Basel, Switzerland; The Woodlands, Texas; Merrimack, New Hampshire, and Shanghai, China in support of our product and technology development. Among our competitors are some of the world’s largest chemical companies with integrated raw material value chains to formulation companies that leverage intellectual and highly proprietary technology for problem solving.

Aerospace. Our leading market position is driven by our specialty resins, curing and toughening agents and formulations offerings backed by customer-specific certifications, quality and consistency. These products are value-added, and differentiated, backed by many years of reliable global supply and service. Our major competitors include 3M, Henkel and Sumitomo.

Automotive. Our automotive market is driven by light weight, cost effective production and assembling and durability of electrical devices and high-speed electronics, and is serviced by our leading positions in systems formulations, curing and toughening technologies, backed by application and process manufacturing knowledge. Our product offering allows for reliable and competitive solutions, with a strong ARALDITE® and PROBIMER® brand reputation, a robust supply chain and a specialized distribution channel to fulfill customers’ expectant demand for service and quality. Our major competitors include Kaneka, Taiyo and Westlake.

Electrical Infrastructure. Our leading position in these markets is primarily based on formulations expertise, product reliability and performance, process expertise and technical support. Our competitive strengths result from our focus on defined market segment needs, our long-standing customer relationships, product reliability and technical performance, and reputation and recognition as a quality supplier. Our major competitors include Aditya Birla, Nagase, Westlake and Xiongrun.

Coatings Infrastructure. Our long-standing position in these markets is served by our specialty resins and additives. Our additives and specialty resins offerings, including epoxy hardeners, phenoxy and acrylonitrile-butadiene reactive liquid polymers and high solid or water-based components, are value-added products that allow our customers to differentiate their own products. Our major competitors include Allnex, Evonik, Kukdo and Westlake.

General Industry. Our adhesive markets are being driven by cost effective production and assembling and are serviced by our leading positions in systems formulations, curing and toughening technologies backed by application and process manufacturing knowledge. Our adhesive offering allows for reliable and competitive solutions with a strong ARALDITE® brand reputation, a robust supply chain and a specialized distribution channel to fulfill customers’ expectant demand for service and quality. Our major competitors include 3M, Henkel, ITW and Parker Hannifin.

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

We support our businesses with a major commitment to research and development, technical services and process engineering improvement. Our research and development centers are located in The Woodlands, Texas; Everberg, Belgium; Basel, Switzerland; Merrimack, New Hampshire; and Shanghai, China. Other process development/technical service centers are located in Deggendorf, Germany, Auburn Hills, Michigan and Derry, New Hampshire (Polyurethanes); and Monthey, Switzerland, MacIntosh, Alabama, Akron, Ohio and Panyu, China (Advanced Materials).

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

Proprietary protection of our processes, apparatuses and other technology and inventions is important to our businesses. We own approximately 2,485 unexpired patents and have approximately 965 patent applications (including provisionals) currently pending. While a presumption of validity exists with respect to issued U.S. patents, we cannot assure that any of our patents will not be challenged, invalidated, circumvented or rendered unenforceable. Furthermore, we cannot assure the issuance of any pending patent application, or that if patents do issue, that these patents will provide meaningful protection against competitors or against competitive technologies. Additionally, our competitors or other third parties may obtain patents that restrict or preclude our ability to lawfully produce or sell our products in a competitive manner.

We also rely upon unpatented proprietary know-how and continuing technological innovation and other trade secrets to develop and maintain our competitive position. There can be no assurance, however, that confidentiality and other agreements into which we enter and have entered will not be breached, that they will provide meaningful protection for our trade secrets or proprietary know-how, or that adequate remedies will be available in the event of an unauthorized use or disclosure of such trade secrets and know-how. In addition, there can be no assurance that others will not obtain knowledge of these trade secrets through independent development or other access by legal means.

In addition to our own patents and patent applications and proprietary trade secrets and know-how, we are a party to certain licensing arrangements and other agreements authorizing us to use trade secrets, know-how and related technology and/or operate within the scope of certain patents owned by other entities. We also have licensed or sub-licensed intellectual property rights to third parties.

We have associated brand names with a number of our products, and we have approximately 2,900 trademark registrations and 178 pending trademark applications globally. These registrations and applications include extensions of protection under the Madrid system for the international registration of marks. However, there can be no assurance that the trademark registrations will provide meaningful protection against the use of similar trademarks by competitors, or that the value of our trademarks will not be diluted.

Because of the breadth and nature of our intellectual property rights and our business, we do not believe that any single intellectual property right (other than certain trademarks for which we intend to maintain the applicable registrations) is material to our business. Moreover, we do not believe that the termination of intellectual property rights expected to occur over the next several years, either individually or in the aggregate, will materially adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations.

HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT 

As of December 31, 2022, we employed approximately 7,000 associates in our operations around the world. Approximately 2,000 of these employees are located in the U.S., while approximately 5,000 are located in other countries.

We believe our employees are the foundation of our success. Our overall talent acquisition and retention strategy is designed to attract and retain diverse and qualified candidates to meet our performance goals on an ongoing basis and enable the success of our Company. Our key areas of focus include:

Health and Safety: Our global health and safety programs are designed around dedicated environmental, health and safety (“EHS”) Standards and Procedures specifically tailored at the facility level to address the different jurisdictions and regulations, specific operating hazards and unique working environments. The Company’s objectives focus on regulatory compliance and protection of people and the environment. Compliance with the EHS Standards and Procedures are evaluated through site self-audits as well as regularly scheduled Corporate EHS audits. In addition, other management systems applicable to many of our sites include third party verification of Responsible Care® and ISO 14001. A key metric used to assess the safety performance of our operations is the ASTM 2920 Level 1 injury rate, which follows a uniform international method for recording occupational injuries and illnesses. In the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we had injury rates of 0.21 and 0.10, respectively.

Ethics and Compliance: At Huntsman our commitment to our values of Honesty, Integrity, Respect and Responsibility unite us globally and fosters high ethical standards in our relationships with each other, with our customers and with all those we do business with. Our Business Conduct Guidelines, along with the policies and procedures referenced within the guidelines, provide guidance for all employees on topics such as anti-corruption and bribery, anti-trust and competition law, discrimination including our policy on harassment and retaliation, privacy, appropriate use of company assets, protecting confidential information and reporting concerns and violations. The guidelines are used to reinforce our commitment to operating in a fair, honest, responsible and ethical manner and to emphasize the importance of having an open and welcoming environment in which all employees feel empowered to do what is right. Should potential violations of the guidelines, policies, procedures or the law occur, employees are encouraged to voice concerns promptly and are reminded that we do not tolerate retaliation against anyone who reports a potential violation in good faith. All employees are required to complete the training on the Business Conduct Guidelines annually, and our Chief Compliance Officer reports matters related to the Business Conduct Guidelines to the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors on a quarterly basis. 

Compensation and Benefits: Our policy is to competitively compensate our associates and to appropriately motivate associates to provide value to our shareholders. Our compensation philosophy is to align both short-term and long-term incentives with our strategic objectives and to take into account market forces, best practices, and the performance of our Company and the employee. We offer employees benefits that vary by country and are designed to meet or exceed local laws and to be competitive in the marketplace. Examples of benefits offered in the U.S. include a 401(k) plan with employer contributions, health benefits, business travel and life/disability insurance, supplemental voluntary insurance and paid time off.

Training and Talent Development: We are committed to the continued development of our workforce. We provide technical and leadership training to our associates, customers and suppliers who work for or with our products and services. Training is provided in a number of formats to accommodate the learner’s style, pace, location, technological knowledge and access.

ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH AND SAFETY MATTERS

General

We are subject to extensive federal, state, local and international laws, regulations, rules and ordinances relating to occupational health and safety, process safety, pollution, protection of the environment and natural resources, product management and distribution, and the generation, storage, handling, transportation, treatment, disposal and remediation of hazardous substances and waste materials. In the ordinary course of business, we are subject to frequent environmental inspections and monitoring and occasional investigations by governmental enforcement authorities. In addition, our production facilities require operating permits that are subject to renewal, modification and, in certain circumstances, revocation. Actual or alleged violations of safety laws, environmental laws or permit requirements could result in restrictions or prohibitions on plant operations or product distribution, substantial civil or criminal sanctions, or injunctions limiting or prohibiting our operations altogether. In addition, some environmental laws may impose liability on a strict or joint and several basis. Moreover, changes in environmental regulations could inhibit or interrupt our operations, or require us to modify our facilities or operations and make significant environmental compliance expenditures. Accordingly, environmental or regulatory matters may cause us to incur significant unanticipated losses, costs or liabilities. Information related to EHS matters may also be found in other areas of this report including “—Item 1A. Risk Factors,” “Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies—Environmental Expenditures” to our consolidated financial statements and “Note 21. Environmental Health and Safety Matters” to our consolidated financial statements.

Environmental, Health and Safety Systems

We are committed to achieving and maintaining compliance with all applicable EHS legal requirements, and we have developed policies and management systems that are intended to identify the multitude of EHS legal requirements applicable to our operations, enhance compliance with applicable legal requirements, improve the safety of our employees, contractors, community neighbors and customers and minimize the production and emission of wastes and other pollutants. We cannot guarantee, however, that these policies and systems will always be effective or that we will be able to manage EHS legal requirements without incurring substantial costs. Although EHS legal requirements are constantly changing and are frequently difficult to comply with, these EHS management systems are designed to assist us in our compliance goals while also fostering efficiency and improvement and reducing overall risk to us. For the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, our capital expenditures for EHS matters totaled $44 million, $36 million and $18 million, respectively, and our estimated capital expenditures for 2023 is expected to be $32 million.

Environmental Remediation

We have incurred, and we may in the future incur, liabilities to investigate and clean up waste or contamination at our current or former facilities or facilities operated by third parties at which we may have disposed of waste or other materials. Similarly, we may incur costs for the cleanup of waste that was disposed of prior to the purchase of our businesses. Under some circumstances, the scope of our liabilities may extend to damages to natural resources.

In cases where our potential liabilities arise from historical contamination based on operations and other events occurring prior to our ownership of a business or specific facility, we frequently obtain an indemnity agreement from the prior owner addressing remediation liabilities arising from pre-closing conditions. We have successfully exercised our rights under these contractual covenants for a number of sites and, where applicable, mitigated our ultimate remediation liabilities. We cannot assure you, however, that the liabilities for all such matters subject to indemnity will be honored by the prior owner or that our existing indemnities will be sufficient to cover our liabilities for such matters.

Based on available information and the indemnification rights we believe are likely to be available, we believe that the costs to investigate and remediate known contamination will not have a material effect on our financial statements. However, if such indemnities are not honored or do not fully cover the costs of investigation and remediation or we are required to contribute to such costs, then such expenditures may have a material effect on our financial statements. At the current time, we are unable to estimate the total cost, exclusive of indemnification benefits, to remediate contaminated sites.

Regulatory Matters

Greenhouse Gas Regulation and Climate Change

Globally, our operations are increasingly subject to regulations that seek to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases (“GHGs”), such as carbon dioxide and methane, which may be contributing to changes in the earth’s climate. At the Durban negotiations of the Conference of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol in 2012, a limited group of nations, including the European Union (the “EU”), agreed to a second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty that provides for reductions in GHG emissions. More significantly, the EU GHG Emissions Trading System (“ETS”), established pursuant to the Kyoto Protocol to reduce GHG emissions in the EU, continues in its fourth phase. The European Commission established a market stability reserve to address a surplus of allowances and improve the system’s resilience that started operating in 2019. In addition, the EU has set a binding target to reduce domestic GHG emissions by at least 40% below the 1990 level by 2030 and a binding target to increase the share of renewable energy to at least 32% of the EU’s energy consumption by 2030. In July 2021, the European Commission proposed legislation to increase the greenhouse gas emission reduction target to at least 55% and the renewable energy target to 40%.

In addition, at the 2015 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris, the U.S. and nearly 200 other nations entered into an international climate agreement, which went into effect in November 2016 (the “Paris Agreement”). Although the agreement does not create any binding obligations for nations to limit their GHG emissions, it does include pledges to voluntarily limit or reduce future emissions. The U.S. rejoined the Paris Agreement on February 19, 2021. In addition, in September 2021, U.S. President Biden publicly announced the Global Methane Pledge, a pact that aims to reduce global methane emissions at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030. Since its formal launch at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), over 100 countries have joined the pledge.

Domestic efforts to curb GHG emissions are being led by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (the “EPA”) GHG regulations and similar programs of certain states. To the extent that our domestic operations are subject to the EPA’s GHG regulations, we may face increased capital and operating costs associated with new or expanded facilities. Significant expansions of our existing facilities or construction of new facilities may be subject to the Clean Air Act’s (the “CAA”) requirements for pollutants regulated under the Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Title V programs. Some of our facilities are also subject to the EPA’s Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases rule, and any further regulation may increase our operational costs. In April of 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) proposed new rules regarding the reporting of GHG emissions and impacts of such emissions and climate change generally on businesses subject to SEC reporting requirements. These rules, if adopted, could result in additional costs for preparing financial statements and additional liability. It is uncertain at this time whether the rules, as proposed, will be adopted and go into effect.

We are already managing and reporting GHG emissions, to varying degrees, as required by law for our sites in locations subject to U.S. federal and state requirements, Kyoto Protocol obligations and/or ETS requirements. Although these sites are subject to existing GHG legislation, few have experienced or anticipate significant cost increases as a result of these programs, although it is possible that GHG emission restrictions may increase over time. Potential consequences of such restrictions include capital requirements to modify assets to meet GHG emission restrictions and/or increases in energy costs above the level of general inflation, as well as direct compliance costs. Currently, however, it is not possible to estimate the likely financial impact of potential future regulation on any of our sites.

Finally, most scientists have concluded that increasing concentrations of GHGs in the earth’s atmosphere may produce climate changes that have significant physical effects, such as increased frequency and severity of storms, droughts, and floods and other climatic events. If any of those effects were to occur, they could have an adverse effect on our assets and operations.

AVAILABLE INFORMATION

We maintain an internet website at http://www.huntsman.com. Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to these reports are available free of charge through our website as soon as reasonably practicable after we file these materials with the SEC. We also provide electronic or paper copies of our SEC filings free of charge upon request.

GLOSSARY OF CHEMICAL TERMS

BDO—butane diol

BLR—base liquid resin

DGA^® Agent—DIGLYCOLAMINE^® agent

DPA—diphenylamine

EDC—ethylene dichloride

EG—ethylene glycol

EO—ethylene oxide

MDA—methylene dioxy amphetamine

MDI—methyl diphenyl diisocyanate

MNB—mononitrobenzene

MTBE—methyl tertiary-butyl ether

PBT—polybutylene terephthalate

PO—propylene oxide

Polyols—a substance containing several hydroxyl groups. A diol, triol and tetrol contain two, three and four hydroxyl groups, respectively.

TDI—toluene diisocyanate

TPU—thermoplastic polyurethane

UPR—unsaturated polyester resin

ITEM 1A.  RISK FACTORS 

Any of the following risks could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

RISKS RELATED TO OUR BUSINESS AND OPERATIONS

Our industry is affected by global economic factors, including risks associated with volatile economic conditions, and current economic conditions have had, and may continue to have, significant effects on our customers and suppliers and may in the future have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and stock price.

Our financial results are substantially dependent on overall economic conditions in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Declining economic conditions, or negative perceptions about economic conditions, could result in a substantial decrease in demand for our products and could adversely affect our business. The timing and extent of any changes to currently prevailing market conditions is uncertain, and supply and demand may be unbalanced at any time. The effects of global economic conditions in certain markets include, among other things, significant reductions in available capital and liquidity from credit markets, supply or demand driven inflationary pressures, and substantial fluctuations in currency values worldwide. Uncertain economic conditions and market instability make it particularly difficult for us to forecast demand trends. As a consequence, we may not be able to accurately predict future economic conditions or the effect of such conditions on our financial condition or results of operations. We can give no assurances as to the timing, extent or duration of the current or future economic cycles impacting the industries in which we operate.

Disruptions in production at our manufacturing facilities may have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations and/or financial condition.

Manufacturing facilities in our industry are subject to planned and unplanned production shutdowns, turnarounds, outages and other disruptions. Any serious disruption at any of our facilities could impair our ability to use our facilities and have a material adverse impact on our revenues and increase our costs and expenses. Alternative facilities with sufficient capacity may not be available, may cost substantially more or may take a significant time to increase production or qualify with our customers, any of which could negatively impact our business, results of operations and/or financial condition. Long-term production disruptions may cause our customers to seek alternative supply which could further adversely affect our profitability.

Unplanned production disruptions may occur for external reasons including natural disasters, weather, disease, strikes, transportation interruption, government regulation, political unrest or terrorism, or internal reasons, such as fire, unplanned maintenance or other manufacturing problems. Any significant production disruption could have a material impact on our operations, operating results and financial condition.

In addition, we rely on a number of vendors, suppliers, and in some cases sole-source suppliers, service providers, toll manufacturers and collaborations with other industry participants to provide us with chemicals, feedstocks and other raw materials, along with energy sources and, in certain cases, facilities that we need to operate our business. If the business of these third parties is disrupted, some of these companies could be forced to reduce their output, shut down their operations or file for bankruptcy protection. If this were to occur, it could adversely affect their ability to provide us with the raw materials, energy sources or facilities that we need, which could materially disrupt our operations, including the production of certain of our products. Moreover, it could be difficult to find replacements for certain of our business partners without incurring significant delays or cost increases. If we are required to obtain alternate sources for raw materials because a supplier is unwilling or unable to perform under raw material supply agreements, if a supplier terminates its agreements with us, if we are unable to renew our existing contracts, or if we are unable to obtain new long-term supply agreements, we may not be able to obtain these raw materials in sufficient quantities, on economic terms, or in a timely manner, and we may not be able to enter into supply agreements on terms as favorable to us as our existing supply agreements, if at all. All of these risks could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

While we maintain business recovery plans that are intended to allow us to recover from natural disasters or other events that could disrupt our business, we cannot provide assurances that our plans would fully protect us from the effects of all such disasters or from events that might increase in frequency or intensity due to climate change. In addition, insurance may not adequately compensate us for any losses incurred as a result of natural or other disasters. In areas prone to frequent natural or other disasters, insurance may become increasingly expensive or not available at all. Furthermore, some potential climate-driven losses, particularly inundation due to sea-level rise, may pose long-term risks to our physical facilities such that operations cannot be restored in their current locations.

The markets for many of our products are cyclical and volatile, and we may experience depressed market conditions for such products.

The cyclicality in the markets for many of our products occurs as a result of alternating periods of tight supply, causing prices and margins to increase, followed by periods of lower capacity utilization, resulting in oversupply and declining prices and margins. The volatility these markets experience occurs as a result of changes in the demand for products as a consequence of global economic activity, changes in energy prices and changes in customers’ requirements. For example, demand for our products depends in part on aerospace, housing and construction industries, which are cyclical in nature and have historically been impacted by downturns in the economy. The supply-demand balance is also impacted by capacity additions or reductions that result in changes in utilization rates. The cyclicality and volatility of our industry results in significant fluctuations in profits and cash flow from period to period and over the business cycle.

Our results of operations may be adversely affected by international business risks, including fluctuations in currency exchange rates, legal restrictions and taxes.

We conduct a majority of our business operations outside the U.S., and these operations are subject to risks normally associated with international operations. These risks include the need to convert currencies that may be received for our products into currencies in which we purchase raw materials or pay for services, which could result in a gain or loss depending on fluctuations in exchange rates. We transact business in many foreign currencies, including euros, Swiss francs, Chinese renminbi, Indian rupees, Brazilian reals and Thai bahts. We translate our local currency financial results into U.S. dollars based on average exchange rates prevailing during the reporting period or the exchange rate at the end of that period. During times of a strengthening U.S. dollar, our reported international sales and earnings may be reduced because the local currency may translate into fewer U.S. dollars. Because we currently have significant operations located outside the U.S., we are exposed to fluctuations in global currency rates which may result in gains or losses on our financial statements.

Other risks of international operations include trade barriers, tariffs, exchange controls, cash repatriation restrictions, national and regional labor strikes, social and political risks, general economic risks and required compliance with a variety of U.S. and foreign laws, including monetary policies, tax laws, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (and foreign equivalents), export controls and regulations administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. Any changes in tariffs or trade barriers could make our products less competitive compared to other producers not subject to the same tariffs or trade barriers. Any decision to repatriate cash as dividends could subject us to foreign and U.S. federal and state income taxes without any offsetting foreign tax credit relief. Although we maintain an anti-corruption compliance program throughout our company, violations of our compliance program may result in criminal or civil sanctions, including material monetary fines, penalties and other costs against us or our employees, and may have a material adverse effect on our business. Furthermore, in foreign jurisdictions where legal processes may vary from country to country, we may experience difficulty in enforcing agreements. In jurisdictions where bankruptcy laws and practices vary, we may experience difficulty collecting foreign receivables through foreign legal systems. The occurrence of these risks, among others, could disrupt the businesses of our international subsidiaries, which could significantly affect their ability to make distributions to us.

We operate in a significant number of jurisdictions, which contributes to the volatility of our effective tax rate. Changes in tax laws or the interpretation of tax laws in the jurisdictions in which we operate may affect our effective tax rate. For example, a number of countries, as well as organizations such as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, support a global minimum tax initiative. Such countries and organizations are also actively considering changes to existing tax laws or have proposed new tax laws that could increase our tax obligations. In addition, generally accepted accounting principles in the U.S. (“GAAP” or “U.S. GAAP”) have required us to place valuation allowances against our net operating losses and other deferred tax assets in certain tax jurisdictions. These valuation allowances result from analysis of positive and negative evidence supporting the realization of tax benefits. Negative evidence includes a cumulative history of pre-tax operating losses in specific tax jurisdictions. Changes in valuation allowances have resulted in material fluctuations in our effective tax rate. Economic conditions or changes in tax laws may dictate the continued imposition of current valuation allowances and, potentially, the establishment of new valuation allowances. While significant valuation allowances remain, our effective tax rate will likely continue to experience significant fluctuations. Furthermore, certain foreign jurisdictions may take actions to delay our ability to collect value-added tax refunds.

Significant price volatility or interruptions in supply of our raw materials and energy may result in increased costs that we may be unable to pass on to our customers, which could reduce our profitability.

We purchase a substantial portion of our raw materials and energy from third-party suppliers and their costs represent a substantial portion of our operating expenses. The prices for raw materials and energy generally follow price trends of, and vary with market conditions for, crude oil and natural gas feedstocks, which are highly volatile and cyclical. In particular, the impacts of COVID-19 have disrupted nearly every aspect of the global supply chain, and the resulting increases in energy costs and scarcity of raw materials has increased the cost of operating our business. While we attempt to match cost increases with corresponding product price increases or surcharges, we are not always able to raise product prices immediately or at all. Timing differences between raw material and energy prices, which may change daily, and contract product prices, which in many cases are negotiated only monthly or less often, have had and may continue to have a negative effect on our cash flow. Any cost increase that we are not able to pass on to our customers could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

In general, the feedstocks and other raw materials we consume are organic chemical commodity products that are readily available at market prices. There are, however, several raw materials for which there are only a limited number of suppliers or a single supplier. To mitigate potential supply constraints, we frequently enter into supply agreements with particular suppliers, evaluate alternative sources of supply and evaluate alternative technologies to avoid reliance on limited or sole-source suppliers. In addition, where supply relationships are concentrated, particular attention is paid by the parties to ensure strategic intentions are aligned to facilitate long-term planning. If certain of our suppliers are unable to meet their obligations under present supply agreements, we may be forced to pay higher prices to obtain the necessary raw materials from other sources and we may not be able to increase prices for our finished products to recoup the higher raw materials costs. Any interruption in the supply of raw materials could increase our costs or decrease our revenues, which could reduce our cash flow. The inability of a supplier to meet our raw material needs could have a material adverse effect on our financial statements and results of operations.

The number of sources for and availability of certain raw materials is also specific to the particular geographical region in which a facility is located. Political and economic instability in the countries from which we purchase our raw material supplies could adversely affect their availability. In addition, if raw materials become unavailable within a geographic area from which they are now sourced, then we may not be able to obtain suitable or cost-effective substitutes. We may also experience higher operating costs such as energy costs, which could affect our profitability. We may not always be able to increase our selling prices to offset the impact of any higher production costs or reduced production levels, which could reduce our earnings and decrease our liquidity.

Our results of operations and financial condition have been, and may in the future be, adversely impacted by COVID-19, and the duration and extent of such impacts remain uncertain.

COVID-19 has adversely affected the global economy and financial markets and has impacted our operations and financial results. In particular, certain of our key end markets, including aerospace, have been disproportionally impacted by the effects of COVID-19. The extent to which COVID-19 may continue to adversely impact our business depends on future developments, including:

The extent to which COVID-19 may continue to adversely impact our business depends on future developments, including:

Any failure to complete the proposed sale of our Textile Effects Business could materially adversely impact the market price of our common stock as well as our business, financial condition and results of operations.

On August 9, 2022, we entered into a definitive agreement to sell our Textile Effects Business to Archroma for a purchase price of $593 million in cash plus the assumption of underfunded pension liabilities, and we expect the net after tax cash proceeds to be approximately $540 million before fees and subject to certain customary purchase price adjustments as set forth in the purchase agreement. Completion of the proposed sale is subject to our and Archroma’s performance under the purchase agreement. Unanticipated developments could delay or prevent the transaction from closing, which could cause our common stock to experience negative reactions from the financial markets.

In addition, our ongoing businesses may be adversely affected, and we may be subject to certain risks and consequences, including, but not limited to, the following:

Any of these factors could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and the price of our common stock.​​

Our efforts to grow and transform our businesses may require significant investments; if our strategies are unsuccessful, our business, results of operations and/or financial condition may be materially adversely affected.

We continuously evaluate opportunities for growth and change. These initiatives may involve making acquisitions, entering into partnerships and joint ventures, divesting assets, restructuring our existing operations and assets, creating new financial structures and building new facilities—any of which could require a significant investment and subject us to new kinds of risks. We may incur additional indebtedness to finance these opportunities. If our strategies for growth and change are not successful, we could face increased financial pressure, such as increased cash flow demands, reduced liquidity and diminished access to financial markets, and the equity value of our businesses could be diluted.

The implementation of strategies for growth and change may create additional risks, including:

Our inability to mitigate these risks or other problems encountered in connection with our strategies for growth and change could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, we may fail to fully achieve the savings or growth projected for current or future initiatives notwithstanding the expenditure of substantial resources in pursuit thereof.

We may have difficulties integrating acquired businesses and as a result, our business, results of operations and/or financial condition may be materially adversely affected.

We have completed a number of acquisitions, and we expect to continue to acquire additional businesses and enter into joint ventures as part of our business strategy. Growth through acquisitions and joint ventures involves risks, including:

Our inability to address these risks could cause us to fail to realize the anticipated benefits of such acquisitions or joint ventures and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. 

The industries in which we compete are highly competitive, and we may not be able to compete effectively with our competitors that have greater financial resources, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The industries in which we operate are highly competitive. Among our competitors are some of the world’s largest chemical companies. Changes in the competitive landscape could make it difficult for us to retain our competitive position in various products and markets throughout the world. Some of the companies with whom we compete may be able to produce products more economically than we can. Furthermore, some of our competitors have greater financial resources, which may enable them to invest significant capital into their businesses, including expenditures for research and development. 

While we are engaged in a range of research and development programs to develop new products and processes, to improve and refine existing products and processes, and to develop new applications for existing products, the failure to develop new products, processes or applications could make us less competitive. Moreover, if any of our current or future competitors develops proprietary technology that enables them to produce products at a significantly lower cost, our technology could be rendered uneconomical or obsolete.

Further, it is possible that we could abandon certain products, processes, or applications due to potential infringement of third party intellectual property rights or that we could be named in future litigation for the infringement or misappropriation of a competitor’s or other third party’s intellectual property rights, which could include a claim for injunctive relief and damages, and, if so, such adverse results could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial position. In addition, certain of our competitors in various countries in which we do business, including China, may be owned by or affiliated with members of local governments and political entities.

These competitors may get special treatment with respect to regulatory compliance and product registration, while certain of our products, including those based on new technologies, may be delayed or even prevented from entering into the local market.

Certain of our businesses use technology that is widely available. Accordingly, barriers to entry, apart from capital availability, may be low in certain product segments of our business. The entrance of new competitors into any of our businesses may reduce our ability to maintain margins or capture improving margins in circumstances where capacity utilization in the industry is increasing. Increased competition in any of our businesses could compel us to reduce the prices of our products, which could result in reduced margins and loss of market share and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

We are subject to risks relating to our information technology systems, and any technology disruption or cybersecurity incident could negatively affect our operations.

We rely on information technology systems across our operations, including for management, supply chain and financial information and various other processes and transactions. Our ability to effectively manage our business depends on the security, reliability and capacity of these systems. Our technology systems or the technology systems of third parties on which we rely, are vulnerable to disruption from circumstances beyond our control including fire, natural disasters, power outages, system failures, security breaches, espionage, cyber-attacks, viruses, theft and inadvertent release of information. Any such disruption to these Information technology systems could disrupt our operations or result in the disclosure of proprietary information about our business or confidential information concerning our customers or employees which could result in negative publicity/brand damage, violation of privacy laws, potential liability, including litigation/investigation/remediation or other legal actions against us or the imposition of penalties, fines, fees or liabilities, which may not be covered by our insurance policies. Any or all the above would potentially cause delays or cancellations of customer orders or impede the manufacture or shipment of products, processing of transactions or reporting of financial results.

While we have invested and will continue to invest in technology security initiatives and disaster recovery plans, we may not be able to implement measures that will protect against all the significant risks to our information technology systems. We have put in place security measures designed to protect against the misappropriation or corruption of our systems, intentional or unintentional disclosure of confidential information, or disruption of our operations. Current employees have, and former employees may have, access to a significant amount of information regarding our operations which could be disclosed to our competitors or otherwise used to harm us. Moreover, our operations in certain locations, such as China, may be particularly vulnerable to security attacks or other problems. Any breach of our security measures could result in unauthorized access to and misappropriation of our information, corruption of data or disruption of operations or transactions, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, we could be required to expend significant additional efforts to respond to information technology issues or to protect against threatened or actual security breaches.

Finally, data privacy is subject to frequently changing rules and regulations in countries where we do business. For example, the EU adopted a regulation that became effective in May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which requires companies to meet regulations regarding the handling of personal data. Our failure to successfully comply with GDPR requirements could result in substantial fines or penalties and legal liability which could tarnish our reputation. 

Our operations involve risks that may increase our operating costs, which could reduce our profitability.

Although we take precautions to enhance the safety of our operations and minimize the risk of disruptions, our operations are subject to hazards inherent in the manufacturing and marketing of chemical and other products. These hazards include: chemical spills, pipeline leaks and ruptures, storage tank leaks, discharges or releases of toxic or hazardous substances or gases and other hazards incident to the manufacturing, processing, handling, transportation and storage of dangerous chemicals. We are also potentially subject to other hazards, including natural disasters and severe weather; explosions and fires; transportation problems, including interruptions, spills and leaks; mechanical failures; unscheduled downtimes; labor difficulties; remediation complications; and other risks. In addition, some equipment and operations at our facilities are owned or controlled by third parties who may not be fully integrated into our safety programs and over whom we are able to exercise limited control. Many potential hazards can cause bodily injury and loss of life, severe damage to or destruction of property and equipment and environmental damage, and may result in suspension of operations and the imposition of civil or criminal penalties and liabilities. Furthermore, we are subject to present and future claims with respect to workplace exposure, exposure of contractors on our premises as well as other persons located nearby, workers’ compensation and other matters.

We maintain property, business interruption, products liability and casualty insurance policies which we believe are in accordance with customary industry practices, as well as insurance policies covering other types of risks, including pollution legal liability insurance, but we are not fully insured against all potential hazards and risks incident to our business. Each of these insurance policies is subject to customary exclusions, deductibles and coverage limits, in accordance with industry standards and practices. As a result of market conditions, premiums and deductibles for certain insurance policies can increase substantially and, in some instances, certain insurance may become unavailable or available only for reduced amounts of coverage. If we were to incur a significant liability for which we were not fully insured, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

In addition, we are subject to various claims and litigation in the ordinary course of business. We are a party to various pending lawsuits and proceedings. For more information, see “—Item 3. Legal Proceedings” below.

Our operations, financial condition and liquidity could be adversely affected by legal claims against us, including antitrust claims.

We face risks arising from various legal actions, including matters relating to antitrust, product liability, intellectual property and environmental claims. It is possible that judgments could be rendered against us in these cases or others for which we could be uninsured or not covered by indemnity, or which may be beyond the amounts that we currently have reserved or anticipate incurring for such matters. Over the past few years, antitrust claims have been made against chemical companies. In this type of litigation, the plaintiffs generally seek injunctive relief, treble damages or the maximum damages allowed by state law, costs of suit and attorneys’ fees, which may result in significant liabilities. An adverse outcome in any antitrust claim could be material and significantly impact our operations, financial condition, liquidity and business reputation.

Our business is exposed to risks associated with the creditworthiness of our suppliers, customers and business partners and the industries in which our suppliers, customers and business partners participate are cyclical in nature, both of which may adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Our business is exposed to risks associated with the creditworthiness of our key suppliers, customers and business partners and reductions in demand for our customers’ products. During periods of economic disruption, more of our customers than normal may experience financial difficulties, including bankruptcies, restructurings and liquidations, which could affect our business by reducing sales, increasing our risk in extending trade credit to customers and reducing our profitability. A significant adverse change in a customer relationship or in a customer’s financial position could cause us to limit or discontinue business with that customer, require us to assume more credit risk relating to that customer’s receivables or limit our ability to collect accounts receivable from that customer.

Our business is dependent on our intellectual property. If our intellectual property rights cannot be enforced or our trade secrets become known to our competitors, our ability to compete may be adversely affected.

Proprietary protection of our processes, apparatuses and other technology is important to our business. While a presumption of validity exists with respect to patents issued to us in the U.S., there can be no assurance that any of our patents will not be challenged, invalidated, circumvented or rendered unenforceable. Furthermore, if any pending patent application filed by us does not result in an issued patent, or if patents are issued to us, but such patents do not provide meaningful protection of our intellectual property, then our ability to compete may be adversely affected. Additionally, our competitors or other third parties may obtain patents that restrict or preclude our ability to lawfully produce or sell our products in a competitive manner, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

We also rely upon unpatented proprietary know-how and continuing technological innovation and other trade secrets to develop and maintain our competitive position. While it is our policy to enter into agreements imposing confidentiality obligations upon our employees and third parties to protect our intellectual property, these confidentiality obligations may be breached, may not provide meaningful protection for our trade secrets or proprietary know-how, or adequate remedies may not be available in the event of an unauthorized access, use or disclosure of our trade secrets and know-how. In addition, others could obtain knowledge of our trade secrets through independent development or other access by legal means.

We may have to rely on judicial enforcement of our patents and other proprietary rights. We may not be able to effectively protect our intellectual property rights from misappropriation or infringement in countries where effective patent, trademark, trade secret and other intellectual property laws and judicial systems may be unavailable, or may not protect our proprietary rights to the same extent as U.S. law.

The failure of our patents or confidentiality agreements to protect our processes, apparatuses, technology, trade secrets or proprietary know-how or the failure of adequate legal remedies for related actions could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

Conflicts, military actions, terrorist attacks, political events, public health crises and general instability, along with increased security regulations related to our industry, could adversely affect our business.

Conflicts, military actions, terrorist attacks, political events and public health crises have precipitated economic instability and turmoil in international commerce and the global economy. The uncertainty and economic disruption resulting from hostilities, military action or acts of terrorism may impact any or all of our facilities and operations or those of our suppliers or customers. Accordingly, any conflict, military action or terrorist attack that impacts us or any of our suppliers or customers, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity. Furthermore, instability and turmoil, particularly in energy-producing nations, may result in raw material cost increases.

Changes in social, political, regulatory and economic conditions or in laws and policies governing foreign trade, manufacturing, development and investment in the territories and countries where we currently develop and sell products, could adversely affect our business. For example, a number of governments have instituted regulations attempting to increase the security of chemical plants and the transportation of hazardous chemicals, which could result in higher operating costs and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and liquidity.

Our pension and postretirement benefit plan obligations are currently underfunded, and under certain circumstances we may have to significantly increase the level of cash funding to some or all of these plans, which would reduce the cash available for our business. 

We have unfunded and underfunded obligations under some of our domestic and foreign pension and postretirement benefit plans. The funded status of our pension plans is dependent upon many factors, including returns on invested assets, the level of certain market interest rates and the discount rates used to determine pension obligations. Unfavorable returns on the plan assets or unfavorable changes in applicable laws or regulations could materially change the timing and amount of required plan funding, which would reduce the cash available for our business. In addition, a decrease in the discount rate used to determine pension obligations could result in an increase in the valuation of pension obligations, which could affect the reported funding status of our pension plans and future contributions, as well as the periodic pension cost in subsequent fiscal years.

With respect to our domestic pension and postretirement benefit plans, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”) has the authority to terminate an underfunded tax-qualified pension plan under limited circumstances in accordance with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended. In the event our tax-qualified pension plans are terminated by the PBGC, we could be liable to the PBGC for the entire amount of the underfunding and, under certain circumstances, the liability could be senior to our notes. With respect to our foreign pension and postretirement benefit plans, the effects of underfunding depend on the country in which the pension and postretirement benefit plan is established. For example, in the U.K. and Germany semi-public pension protection programs have the authority in certain circumstances to assume responsibility for underfunded pension schemes, including the right to recover the amount of the underfunding from us.

RISKS RELATED TO REGULATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION

We are subject to many EHS regulations that may result in unanticipated costs or liabilities, which could reduce our profitability. 

We are subject to extensive federal, state, local and foreign laws, regulations, rules and ordinances relating to pollution, protection of the environment and human health and safety, and the generation, storage, handling, transportation, treatment, disposal and remediation of hazardous substances and waste materials. Actual or alleged violations of EHS laws or permit requirements could result in restrictions or prohibitions on plant operations and substantial civil or criminal sanctions, as well as, under some EHS laws, the assessment of strict liability and/or joint and several liability.

Many of our products and operations are subject to the chemical control laws of the countries in which they are located. These laws include the regulation of chemical substances and inventories under the Toxic Substances Control Act (“TSCA”) in the U.S. and the Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals (“REACH”) and the Classification, Labeling and Packaging of substances and mixtures (“CLP”) regulations in Europe. Analogous regimes exist in other parts of the world, including China, South Korea, and Taiwan. In addition, a number of countries where we operate, including the U.K., have adopted rules to conform chemical labeling in accordance with the globally harmonized system. Many of these foreign regulatory regimes are in the process of a multi-year implementation period for these rules.

Additional new laws and regulations may be enacted or adopted by various regulatory agencies globally. For example, TSCA reform legislation was enacted in June 2016, and the EPA has begun the process of issuing new chemical control regulations. EPA issued several final rules in 2017 and 2018 under the revised TSCA related to existing chemicals, including the following: (i) a rule to establish EPA’s process and criteria for identifying chemicals for risk evaluation; (ii) a rule to establish EPA’s process for evaluating high priority chemicals and their uses to determine whether or not they present an unreasonable risk to health or the environment; and (iii) a rule to require industry reporting of chemicals manufactured or processed in the U.S. over the past 10 years. In April 2020, EPA finalized revisions to its Chemical Data Reporting rule under TSCA, which changes reporting requirements. The EPA has also released its framework for approving new chemicals and new uses of existing chemicals. Under the framework, a new chemical or use presents an unreasonable risk if it exceeds set standards. Such a finding could result in either the issuance of rules restricting the use of the chemical being evaluated or in the need for additional testing. The costs of compliance with any new laws or regulations cannot be estimated until the manner in which they will be implemented has been more precisely defined.

Furthermore, governmental, regulatory and societal demands for increasing levels of product safety and environmental protection could result in increased pressure for more stringent regulatory control with respect to the chemical industry. In addition, these concerns could influence public perceptions regarding our products and operations, the viability of certain products, our reputation, the cost to comply with regulations, and the ability to attract and retain employees. Moreover, changes in EHS regulations could inhibit or interrupt our operations, or require us to modify our facilities or operations. Accordingly, environmental or regulatory matters may cause us to incur significant unanticipated losses, costs or liabilities, which could reduce our profitability. For example, several of our products are being evaluated under REACH and CLP regulations and actions thereunder could negatively impact sales.

We could incur significant expenditures in order to comply with existing or future EHS laws. Capital expenditures and costs relating to EHS matters will be subject to evolving regulatory requirements and will depend on the timing of the promulgation and enforcement of specific standards which impose requirements on our operations. Capital expenditures and costs beyond those currently anticipated may therefore be required under existing or future EHS laws.

Furthermore, we may be liable for the costs of investigating and cleaning up environmental contamination on or from our properties or at off-site locations where we disposed of or arranged for the disposal or treatment of hazardous materials, or from disposal activities that pre-dated our purchase of our businesses. We may therefore incur additional costs and expenditures beyond those currently anticipated to address all such known and unknown situations under existing and future EHS laws.

Regulatory requirements to reduce GHG or other emissions could have an adverse effect on our results of operations. 

Our operations are increasingly subject to regulations that seek to reduce emissions of GHGs, such as carbon dioxide, methane and ethylene oxide, among others, which may be contributing to changes in the Earth’s climate or potentially impacting health and welfare. There are existing efforts to address such emissions at the international, national, and regional levels. For example, the Paris Agreement, which entered into force in November 2016, resulted in voluntary commitments by numerous countries to reduce their GHG emissions. The U.S. rejoined the Paris Agreement on February 19, 2021. In addition, in September 2021, U.S. President Biden publicly announced the Global Methane Pledge, a pact that aims to reduce global methane emissions at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030. Since its formal launch at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), over 100 countries have joined the pledge. The EU also regulates GHGs under the EU ETS and China has established its own country-wide GHG cap and trade program. In the U.S., the Biden Administration has announced plans to enact new rules to address power plant GHG emissions, but a proposed rule has not yet been released. Therefore, the final scope of any U.S. regulation of GHG emissions is uncertain at this time. Such rules and agreements may affect the long-term price and supply of electricity and natural gas and demand for products that contribute to energy efficiency and renewable energy. These various regulations and agreements may result in increased costs to purchased energy, additional capital costs for installation or modification of associated equipment, and additional costs associated directly with such emissions (such as cap and trade systems or carbon taxes), which are primarily related to energy use. Likewise, there are efforts aimed at curbing other risks associated with emissions or exposures to other substances, which could have similar impacts. Compliance with these regulations and any more stringent restrictions in the future may increase our operational costs.

In addition, most scientists have concluded that increasing concentrations of GHGs in the Earth’s atmosphere may produce climate changes, such as increased frequency and severity of storms, droughts, floods and other climatic events. If any such effects were to occur in areas where we or our clients operate, they could have an adverse effect on our assets and operations.

We could incur significant expenditures in order to comply with existing or future EHS laws. Capital expenditures and costs relating to EHS matters will be subject to evolving regulatory requirements and will depend on the timing of the promulgation and enforcement of specific standards which impose requirements on our operations. Capital expenditures and costs beyond those currently anticipated may therefore be required under existing or future EHS laws.

Furthermore, we may be liable for the costs of investigating and cleaning up environmental contamination on or from our properties or at off-site locations where we disposed of or arranged for the disposal or treatment of hazardous materials or from disposal activities that pre-dated our purchase of our businesses. We may therefore incur additional costs and expenditures beyond those currently anticipated to address all such known and unknown situations under existing and future EHS laws.

RISKS RELATED TO INDEBTEDNESS

Changes in our credit ratings could increase our borrowing costs or negatively impact our ability to access debt capital markets.

We rely on access to the debt capital markets and other short-term borrowings to finance our operations. The major rating agencies routinely evaluate our credit profile and assign debt ratings. This evaluation is based on a number of factors, which include weighing our financial strength versus business, industry and financial risk. A decrease in the ratings assigned to us by ratings agencies may negatively impact our access to the debt capital markets and increase our borrowing costs. The addition of more debt to our capital structure could also impact our credit ratings. Failure to maintain an investment grade rating would adversely affect our borrowing costs and could adversely affect our access to the debt capital markets. Any limitation on our ability to continue to raise money in the debt capital markets could have a substantial negative effect on our liquidity. Further, if we are unable to generate sufficient cash flow or maintain access to adequate external financing, including from significant disruptions in the global credit markets, our operations and opportunities for growth would be negatively impacted, which could adversely impact our results of operations.

GENERAL RISK FACTORS

Certain provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws could discourage a takeover attempt, which may reduce or eliminate the likelihood of a change of control transaction and, therefore, limit your ability to sell our common stock at a price higher than the current market value.

Certain provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, as well as certain provisions of Delaware law, could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire control of our Company, even if some of our stockholders were to consider such a change of control to be beneficial. Our certificate of incorporation also authorizes our Board of Directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval. Therefore, our Board of Directors could elect to issue preferred stock that has special voting or other rights that could make it even more difficult for a third party to acquire us, which may reduce or eliminate your ability to sell our common stock at a price higher than the current market value.

We have purchased, and may continue to purchase, a portion of our equity and debt securities, which could impact the market for our equity and debt securities and likely would negatively affect our liquidity.

Consistent with past practices, we may from time to time seek to repurchase or redeem our equity and debt securities in open market purchases, accelerated repurchase programs, privately negotiated transactions, tender offers, partial or full calls for redemption or otherwise. Any such repurchases or redemptions and the timing and amount thereof would depend on prevailing market conditions, liquidity requirements, contractual restrictions and other factors. Such transactions could negatively affect our liquidity.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

As of the date of this filing, we did not have any unresolved comments from the staff of the SEC.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES 

We own or lease chemical manufacturing and research facilities in the locations indicated in the list below, which we believe are adequate for our short-term and anticipated long-term needs. We own or lease office space and storage facilities throughout the U.S. and in many foreign countries. Our principal executive offices are located at 10003 Woodloch Forest Drive, The Woodlands, Texas 77380. The following is a list of our principal physical properties where manufacturing, research and main office facilities are located.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS 

Texas Emissions Enforcement

On July 26, 2021, the Attorney General of the State of Texas filed a civil suit in the District Court of Travis County, Texas seeking civil penalties and attorney’s fees for alleged violations of the Texas Clean Air Act, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulations and facility permit terms. The complaint alleged multiple unauthorized emissions events and reporting discrepancies that occurred between December 2016 and June 2019 at our former manufacturing facility in Port Neches, Texas. While the state initially sought monetary relief between $250,000 and $1 million, additional allegations were added, which may result in a higher penalty. We completed the sale of our former Port Neches, Texas facility to Indorama Ventures Holdings L.P. on January 3, 2020. We believe that we are contractually indemnified for any defense costs and potential liability that may result from this action. 

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

INFORMATION ABOUT OUR EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

The following is information concerning our executive officers and significant employees as of the date of this report.

Peter R. Huntsman, age 59, is Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of our Company. Peter R. Huntsman has served as Chairman of the Board since January 2018 and as a director of our company and affiliated companies since 1994. Prior to his appointment in July 2000 as Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Huntsman had served as President and Chief Operating Officer since 1994. In 1987, Mr. Huntsman joined Huntsman Polypropylene Corporation as Vice President before serving as Senior Vice President and General Manager. Mr. Huntsman has also served as President of Olympus Oil, as Senior Vice President of Huntsman Chemical Corporation and as a Senior Vice President of Huntsman Packaging Corporation, a former subsidiary of our Company. Mr. Huntsman is a director or manager, as applicable, of Huntsman International and certain of our other subsidiaries. Mr. Huntsman currently serves as a director of Venator Materials PLC, which separated from our Company in 2017.

Phil Lister, age 50, is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Lister was appointed to this position in July 2021. From May 2019 to June 2021, Mr. Lister served as Vice President, Corporate Development. From April 2011 to April 2019, Mr. Lister served in Huntsman’s Polyurethanes division as Vice President, Global Finance and Controller, a role including divisional leadership of strategic planning as well as mergers and acquisitions. Prior to that, Mr. Lister served in numerous financial and business roles in Polyurethanes both in Europe and in the United States. Mr. Lister joined Huntsman in July 1999 with the ICI acquisition. Mr. Lister is a U.K. Chartered Management Accountant.

David Stryker, age 64, is Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. Mr. Stryker was appointed to this position in June 2013. Prior to joining Huntsman, Mr. Stryker served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel, Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer of the BASF Corporation since 2004. Previously, he was Associate General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Siemens Corporation and, prior to that, a partner at the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis. Mr. Stryker started his legal career as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Robert H. Bork on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Anthony P. Hankins, age 65, is Division President, Polyurethanes and Chief Executive Officer, Asia-Pacific. Mr. Hankins was appointed to these positions in March 2004 and February 2011, respectively. From May 2003 to February 2004, Mr. Hankins served as President, Performance Products, from January 2002 to April 2003, he served as Global Vice President, Rigids Division for our Polyurethanes segment, from October 2000 to December 2001, he served as Vice President—Americas for our Polyurethanes segment, and from March 1998 to September 2000, he served as Vice President—Asia-Pacific for our Polyurethanes segment. Mr. Hankins worked for ICI from 1980 to February 1998, when he joined our Company. At ICI, Mr. Hankins held numerous management positions in the plastics, fibers and polyurethanes businesses. He has extensive international experience, having held senior management positions in Europe, Asia and the U.S.

Chuck Hirsch, age 55, is Division President, Performance Products. Prior to his appointment to this position in July 2020, Mr. Hirsch served as Vice President–Commercial, Textile Effects based in Singapore since April 2014. Mr. Hirsch joined Huntsman in July 2009 and has served in multiple roles of increasing responsibility in the Textile Effects division. Prior to joining Huntsman, Mr. Hirsch held numerous positions with International Textile Group, Ciba Specialty Chemicals and Milliken & Company.

Scott J. Wright, age 51, is Division President, Advanced Materials. Mr. Wright was appointed to this position in June 2016. Prior to that time, Mr. Wright served as Vice President of Huntsman Advanced Materials—Europe, Middle East & Africa since 2011. Before joining Huntsman’s Advanced Materials segment, Mr. Wright spent 15 years in Huntsman’s former pigments and additives business in a number of roles of increasing responsibility including product development, business planning, marketing and sales. Prior to joining Huntsman in July 1999, Mr. Wright worked with ICI.

Rohit Aggarwal, age 55 is Division President, Textile Effects. Prior to his appointment to this position in July 2016, Mr. Aggarwal served as Vice President and Managing Director of Indian Subcontinent since July 2015. Mr. Aggarwal joined Huntsman in 2005 and has held various positions within the Advanced Materials and Textile Effects divisions. Mr. Aggarwal left the Company in 2013 to join Louis Dreyfus Commodities B.V. as Chief Executive Officer of Asia Region, a position he held until his return in 2015.

Brittany Benko, age 48, is Senior Vice President, Environmental, Health & Safety and Manufacturing Excellence. Prior to joining Huntsman in August 2020, Ms. Benko served as Vice President, Health, Safety, Environment and Regulatory at Southwestern Energy Company. Previously, Ms. Benko served in a variety of EHS roles with increasing responsibility at several companies including Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, Chesapeake Energy Corporation and BP.

R. Wade Rogers, age 57, is Senior Vice President, Global Human Resources and Chief Compliance Officer. Mr. Rogers has held the position of Senior Vice President, Global Human Resources since August 2009. From May 2004 to August 2009, Mr. Rogers served as Vice President, Global Human Resources, from October 2003 to May 2004, Mr. Rogers served as Director, Human Resources—Americas and from August 2000 to October 2003, he served as Director, Human Resources for our Polymers and Base Chemicals businesses. From the time he joined Huntsman in 1994 to August 2000, Mr. Rogers served as Area Manager, Human Resources—Jefferson County Operations. Prior to joining Huntsman, Mr. Rogers held a variety of positions with Texaco Chemical Company.

Steven C. Jorgensen, age 54, is Vice President and Controller. Prior to his appointment to this position in August 2021, Mr. Jorgensen served as Vice President Finance and Controller in Huntsman’s Performance Products division since January 2017, as Vice President of Accounting Shared Services and Internal Controls since February 2012, as Vice President of Internal Audit and Internal Controls since May 2007 and other positions since joining Huntsman in May 2004. Prior to joining Huntsman, Mr. Jorgensen served as an Internal Audit Manager at General Electric Consumer Finance and a Senior Audit Manager at Deloitte & Touche LLP. Mr. Jorgensen is a Certified Public Accountant.

Twila Day, age 61, is Vice President and Chief Information Officer. Ms. Day was appointed to this position upon joining Huntsman in November 2018. Prior to joining Huntsman, Ms. Day was Managing Director, National Practice Lead for Technology Services, and a member of the executive committee at Alvarez & Marsal. Previously, Ms. Day served at SYSCO Corporation for more than 20 years in a variety of positions, culminating in her appointment as Senior Vice President Information Technology and Chief Information Officer.

Kevin C. Hardman, age 59, is Vice President, Tax. Mr. Hardman served as Chief Tax Officer from 1999 until he was appointed to his current position in 2002. Prior to joining Huntsman in 1999, Mr. Hardman was a tax Senior Manager with the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche LLP, where he worked for 10 years. Mr. Hardman is a Certified Public Accountant and holds a master’s degree in tax accounting.

Ivan Marcuse, age 46, is Vice President, Investor Relations. Prior to joining Huntsman in April 2017, Mr. Marcuse served as Director, Equity Research, Specialty Chemicals for KeyBanc Capital Markets Inc. from August 2011 to February 2017. Previously, he was Vice President, Equity Research, Building Products and Materials, for Northcoast Research. Mr. Marcuse is a CFA charterholder and holds a master’s degree in business administration.

Claire Mei, age 48, is Vice President and Treasurer. Ms. Mei was appointed to this role upon joining Huntsman in August of 2018. Prior to joining Huntsman, Ms. Mei served as Vice President and Treasurer at Chobani Global Holdings since November 2016. Previously, Ms. Mei served in a variety of treasury and financial roles with increasing responsibility at several companies including Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, and Hyatt Corporation. Ms. Mei was also a management consultant with McKinsey & Company in Shanghai, China. Ms. Mei holds a master’s degree in business administration.

Pierre Poukens, age 60, is Vice President, Internal Audit, a position he has held since February 2012. Mr. Poukens was Director of Internal Audit from April 2005 to January 2012 and joined Huntsman as Internal Audit Manager in January 2000. Prior to joining Huntsman, Mr. Poukens held various accounting and auditing positions with European companies in Belgium. Mr. Poukens is a Certified Internal Auditor.

Nooshin Vaughn, age 49, is Vice President, Financial Planning and Analysis. Ms. Vaughn was appointed to this position effective June 2018. Ms. Vaughn previously served as Director, Investor Relations. Prior to that, Ms. Vaughn held numerous roles in finance, accounting and information technology. Prior to joining Huntsman in 1997, Ms. Vaughn worked for the accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche LLP. Ms. Vaughn is a Certified Public Accountant.

PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information And Holders

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “HUN.” As of February 7, 2023, there were approximately 93 stockholders of record and the closing price of our common stock on the New York Stock Exchange was $32.75 per share.

Dividends

The payment of dividends is a business decision made by our Board of Directors from time to time based on our earnings, financial position and prospects, and such other considerations as our Board of Directors considers relevant. Accordingly, while management currently expects that we will continue to pay the quarterly cash dividend, our dividend practice may change at any time. 

Securities Authorized For Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

See “Part III. Item 11. Executive Compensation” for information relating to our equity compensation plans.

Purchases Of Equity Securities By The Company

The following table provides information with respect to shares of our common stock that we repurchased as part of our share repurchase program and shares of restricted stock granted under our stock incentive plans that we withheld upon vesting to satisfy our tax withholding obligations during the three months ended December 31, 2022.

Performance graph 

ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

[RESERVED]

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

ReSULTS OF OPERATIONS

As discussed in “Note 4. Discontinued Operations and Business Dispositions—Discontinued Operations—Sale of Textile Effects Business” to our consolidated financial statements, the results from continuing operations primarily exclude the results of our Textile Effects Business for all periods presented. For each of our Company and Huntsman International, the following tables set forth our consolidated results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020 (dollars in millions, except per share amounts).

Huntsman Corporation

Huntsman International

Huntsman Corporation

NM—Not meaningful

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, which we supplement with certain non-GAAP financial information. These non-GAAP measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the related U.S. GAAP measures, and other companies may define such measures differently. We encourage investors to review our financial statements and the reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures in their entirety and not to rely on any single financial measure. These non-GAAP measures exclude the impact of certain income and expenses that we do not believe are indicative of our core operating results.

Adjusted EBITDA

Our management uses adjusted EBITDA to assess financial performance. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as net income of Huntsman Corporation or Huntsman International, as appropriate, before interest, income tax, depreciation and amortization, net income attributable to noncontrolling interests and certain Corporate and other items, as well as eliminating the following adjustments: (a) business acquisition and integration expenses and purchase accounting inventory adjustments; (b) EBITDA from discontinued operations; (c) fair value adjustments to Venator investment, net and related loss on disposal; (d) loss on early extinguishment of debt; (e) certain legal and other settlements and related expenses; (f) costs (income) associated with the Albemarle Settlement, net; (g) gain on sale of businesses/assets; (h) income from transition services arrangements related to the sale of our Chemical Intermediates Businesses to Indorama; (i) certain nonrecurring information technology project implementation costs; (j) amortization of pension and postretirement actuarial losses; (k) plant incident remediation (credits) costs; and (l) restructuring, impairment and plant closing and transition costs. Starting in the fourth quarter of 2021, we began to include income and costs associated with the Albemarle Settlement, net in our adjustments since such income and costs represents a one-time legal settlement and does not reflect our ongoing financial performance. We believe that net income of Huntsman Corporation or Huntsman International, as appropriate, is the performance measure calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP that is most directly comparable to adjusted EBITDA.

We believe adjusted EBITDA is useful to investors in assessing the businesses’ ongoing financial performance and provides improved comparability between periods through the exclusion of certain items that management believes are not indicative of the businesses’ operational profitability and that may obscure underlying business results and trends. However, this measure should not be considered in isolation or viewed as a substitute for net income of Huntsman Corporation or Huntsman International, as appropriate, or other measures of performance determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Moreover, adjusted EBITDA as used herein is not necessarily comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies due to potential inconsistencies in the methods of calculation. Our management believes this measure is useful to compare general operating performance from period to period and to make certain related management decisions. Adjusted EBITDA is also used by securities analysts, lenders and others in their evaluation of different companies because it excludes certain items that can vary widely across different industries or among companies within the same industry. For example, interest expense can be highly dependent on a company’s capital structure, debt levels and credit ratings. Therefore, the impact of interest expense on earnings can vary significantly among companies. In addition, the tax positions of companies can vary because of their differing abilities to take advantage of tax benefits and because of the tax policies of the various jurisdictions in which they operate. As a result, effective tax rates and tax expense can vary considerably among companies. Finally, companies employ productive assets of different ages and utilize different methods of acquiring and depreciating such assets. This can result in considerable variability in the relative costs of productive assets and the depreciation and amortization expense among companies.

Nevertheless, our management recognizes that there are material limitations associated with the use of adjusted EBITDA in the evaluation of our Company as compared to net income of Huntsman Corporation or Huntsman International, as appropriate, which reflects overall financial performance. For example, we have borrowed money in order to finance our operations and interest expense is a necessary element of our costs and ability to generate revenue. Our management compensates for the limitations of using adjusted EBITDA by using this measure to supplement U.S. GAAP results to provide a more complete understanding of the factors and trends affecting the business rather than U.S. GAAP results alone.

Adjusted Net Income

Adjusted net income is computed by eliminating the after tax amounts related to the following from net income attributable to Huntsman Corporation: (a) business acquisition and integration expenses and purchase accounting inventory adjustments; (b) income from discontinued operations; (c) fair value adjustments to Venator investment, net and related loss on disposal; (d) loss on early extinguishment of debt; (e) certain legal and other settlements and related expenses; (f) costs (income) associated with the Albemarle Settlement, net; (g) gain on sale of businesses/assets; (h) income from transition services arrangements associated with the sale of our Chemical Intermediates Businesses to Indorama; (i) certain nonrecurring information technology project implementation costs; (j) amortization of pension and postretirement actuarial losses; (k) plant incident remediation (credits) costs; (l) establishment of significant deferred tax asset valuation allowance; and (m) restructuring, impairment and plant closing and transition costs. Basic adjusted net income per share excludes dilution and is computed by dividing adjusted net income by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period. Adjusted diluted net income per share reflects all potential dilutive common shares outstanding during the period and is computed by dividing adjusted net income by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period increased by the number of additional shares that would have been outstanding as dilutive securities. Adjusted net income and adjusted net income per share amounts are presented solely as supplemental information.

We believe adjusted net income is useful to investors in assessing the businesses’ ongoing financial performance and provides improved comparability between periods through the exclusion of certain items that management believes are not indicative of the businesses’ operational profitability and that may obscure underlying business results and trends.

Free Cash Flow

We believe free cash flow from continuing operations is an important indicator of our liquidity as it measures the amount of cash we generate. Management internally uses a free cash flow measure: (a) to evaluate our liquidity, (b) evaluate strategic investments, (c) plan stock buyback and dividend levels and (d) evaluate our ability to incur and service debt. 

Adjusted Effective Tax Rate 

We believe that the effective tax rate of Huntsman Corporation or Huntsman International, as appropriate, is the performance measure calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP that is most directly comparable to adjusted effective tax rate. We believe our adjusted effective tax rate provides improved comparability between periods through the exclusion of certain items, such as, business acquisition and integration expenses and purchase accounting inventory adjustments, certain legal and other settlements and related expenses, gains on sale of businesses/assets and certain tax only items, including tax law changes not yet enacted and certain changes in valuation allowances that we believe are not indicative of the businesses’ operational profitability and that may obscure underlying business results and trends.

Our forward-looking adjusted effective tax rate is calculated based on our forecast effective tax rate, and the range of our forward-looking adjusted effective tax rate equals the range of our forecast effective tax rate. We disclose forward-looking adjusted effective tax rate because we cannot adequately forecast certain items and events that may or may not impact us in the near future, such as business acquisition and integration expenses and purchase accounting inventory adjustments, certain legal and other settlements and related expenses, gains on sale of businesses/assets and certain tax only items, including tax law changes not yet enacted. Each of such adjustment has not yet occurred, is out of our control and/or cannot be reasonably predicted. In our view, our forward-looking adjusted effective tax rate represents the forecast effective tax rate on our underlying business operations but does not reflect any adjustments related to the items noted above that may occur and can cause our effective tax rate to differ.

Year Ended December 31, 2022 Compared with Year Ended December 31, 2021

For the year ended December 31, 2022, income from continuing operations attributable to Huntsman Corporation was $448 million, a decrease of $548 million from $996 million in the 2021 period. For the year ended December 31, 2022, income from continuing operations attributable to Huntsman International was $449 million, a decrease of $550 million from $999 million in the 2021 period. The decreases noted above were the result of the following items:

Segment Analysis

Year Ended December 31, 2022 Compared with Year Ended December 31, 2021