In an exclusive interview with Pravin Prashant, Executive Editor, Indian Chemical News, Charlie Shaver, Chairman and CEO, Nouryon shared his views on industry trends and challenges, flagship products, R&D, innovation centre, sustainability, net carbon zero, growth opportunities, and strategic goals. Excerpts of the interview:

What sort of industry trends and challenges Nouryon is foreseeing for the specialty chemical industry in 2025 and how is Nouryon responding to them?

India's chemical market is transforming due to rapid industrialization, a growing upper middle-class, and a focus on sustainability, creating growth opportunities in the Indian end markets including pharma, personal care, cleaning, crop nutrition, paints, coatings, and packaging.

Our strategy in India is built on three pillars: innovation with a strong focus on sustainability, targeting high-growth end markets, and enhancing commercial and cost productivity. These principles guide our operations across our growth end-markets, including agriculture, personal care, paint and coatings, and packaging, ensuring we remain at the forefront of market needs.

A major trend is the shift towards sustainability. The demand for eco-friendly products and sustainable practices is redefining the chemical industry and leading to growth opportunities. Nouryon actively participates in this transition by delivering innovative and sustainable solutions that answer customers' needs. For our 2023 performance, we received an A- score for global climate leadership from CDP and an EcoVadis Gold rating, placing us in the top 5 percent of companies then rated by EcoVadis.

Another critical trend is digital transformation. Advanced digital technologies are optimizing operations, enhancing efficiency, and driving product innovation. Nouryon actively leverages digital tools to streamline processes, elevate customer service, and fuel growth. Digital transformation remains a cornerstone of our strategy, keeping us agile and competitive.

India’s market potential is vast. Nouryon is uniquely positioned to seize these opportunities, drive growth, expand our market presence, and play an integral role in India’s development.

What are some of your flagship products and how do these address current market needs?

Our global expertise, combined with deep regional insights, allows us to develop high-performance products that meet the evolving needs of our customers. Some of our key products include: Specialty polymers - Our portfolio includes dispersants, anti-scalants, rheology modifiers and thickeners, providing flexibility to various formulations; Surfactants and chelating agents - These improve the performance, and stability in personal care, cleaning, and agricultural applications, and enable the development of eco-friendly products; and Specialty chemicals and intermediates - Products including Bermocoll cellulose ethers, Levasil colloidal silica, Expancel microspheres and Kromasil spherical silica enhance the performance, durability, and sustainability of paints and coatings, sealants, automotive parts and pharmaceuticals. Our agricultural solutions support sustainable farming and food security. By continuously advancing our offerings, we help customers achieve efficiency, performance, and environmental responsibility.

How does R&D at Nouryon influence both product development and overall business strategy?

At Nouryon, Research and Development (R&D) is the cornerstone of both our product development and business strategy. By leveraging technical expertise and customer collaboration, we create differentiated products that meet market demands. Our R&D focuses on both "technology push" and "market pull" strategies. By integrating insights from our global laboratories, suppliers, and customers, we develop robust product portfolios that offer unique value propositions. Sustainability is deeply embedded in our R&D, leading to the development of environmentally friendly solutions and answers to consumer buying behaviour.

Our new Innovation Center in Mumbai serves key end-markets including paints and coatings, agriculture, and home and personal care, coordinating with global R&D and sales teams to ensure tailored solutions. By advancing our R&D capabilities and fostering innovation, we ensure that Nouryon remains a trusted and reliable partner across industries.

Key focus areas of the New Innovation Centre and how will it align with the regional and global market demands?

Our Innovation Center in Mumbai addresses regional and global market demands, focusing on key markets such as paints and coatings, agriculture, and home & personal care. It delivers sustainable, advanced innovative solutions by collaborating with sales teams and global R&D networks, providing tailored innovations for customers in India and beyond.

In Paints and Coatings, the center supports applications including water-based paints, asphalt, and building and construction (B&C) products, with a specialized B&C lab complementing our flagship lab in Stenungsund, Sweden, extending support across the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and Middle East and Africa.

Our Agriculture lab, with a state-of-the-art Agriculture Dry lab, advances agricultural technologies with specialized machinery for seed coatings and powder formulations, ensuring enhanced seed protection and performance. We also conduct germination studies to reinforce our innovation leadership in agriculture.

The upgraded Home and Personal Care lab develops innovative applications for surfactants, chelating agents, fabric softeners, hair styling polymers, and starches, aligning with customer needs and sustainability goals.

The Mumbai Innovation Center embodies Nouryon’s strategy of collaboration and customer-centricity, aligning with global R&D and sales teams to address regional challenges and create value in high-potential markets.

What is your overall expansion strategy? Where does India fit into Nouryon’s global growth strategy? What role does an expanded Global Service Center play in achieving this vision?

India is central to Nouryon's global strategy, serving as a key market and hub for innovation and growth. Our investments include the expanded Global Service Center and the new Innovation Center in Mumbai, leveraging India's rich talent and advanced infrastructure to deliver tailored solutions and drive global growth. This expansion leverages India’s vast talent pool to foster innovation and positions Nouryon as an employer of choice. Additionally, Nouryon has recently been awarded the Great Place To Work Certification in India for 2025, further solidifying our reputation.

The expanded Global Service Center in Mumbai, now occupying 100,000 square feet, is a vital part of our operations hosting both commercial teams and functional hubs, enabling seamless integration with global teams and bolstering customer satisfaction. Complementing this is our long-established manufacturing presence in Mahad, Maharashtra which hosts an organic peroxide production site and metal alkyls refilling station, that has been operational for over three decades. Our team in India collaborates closely with global operations to ensure agility and competitiveness in emerging markets, supporting the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and the Middle East and Africa, driving innovation and fostering growth across these fast-growing regions.

India enhances our efforts to serve customers globally, improve operational excellence, and strengthen our competitive edge in dynamic markets. This investment underscores Nouryon's commitment to customer-centricity, innovation, and sustainable growth.

What steps Nouryon is taking to integrate sustainability into its operations and product portfolio globally? How are you planning to achieve net carbon zero?

At Nouryon, sustainability is integral to our strategy, operations, and products.  Our “Commitment to a Sustainable Future” includes: Continuously improving our safety and environmental performance; Growing and innovating to create sustainable solutions enabling customers to be more sustainable; and engaging and partnering with employees, customers, suppliers, and society to drive sustainable progress.

Our 2030 targets include a 40% reduction in absolute GHG emissions, a 10% decrease in total waste intensity, and a 10% decrease in freshwater consumption intensity, all from a 2019 base year. We aspire to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 through carbon operational excellence, energy transition, innovation, and value chain collaboration. 

Our holistic approach integrates environmental, social, and economic dimensions, delivering innovative and sustainable solutions that answer customers' needs.

How is the company addressing the growing global demand for specialty chemicals in sectors such as agriculture, personal care, and paints and coatings with respect to sustainability? What is the new sustainable product portfolio that you are developing in your labs globally?

Nouryon addresses the growing demand for specialty chemicals in paints and coatings, agriculture, and home and personal care, with a focus on sustainability. Our tailored solutions help customers achieve growth and sustainability goals. Examples include: Paints and Coatings - Cool roof coatings and environmentally friendly antimicrobial agents and Low volatile organic compounds and expandable microspheres for solar reflectance in cool-roof coatings; Agriculture - Biodegradable co-formulants and green solvents for crop protection; Crop nutrition products that enable efficient water use ; and Improved crop yield solutions and water conservation solutions; and Home and Personal Care - Green chelates, naturally based and biodegradable cleaning and personal care products; Cleaning solutions for homes, hospitals, and more; and Natural ingredients for hair and skin care formulations.

Nouryon's commitment to sustainability and innovation ensures we provide cutting-edge solutions that drive growth and success in our end-markets. This includes our local initiatives to support regional sustainability efforts and meet specific market needs, reinforcing our position as a leader in sustainable specialty chemicals.

How is Nouryon leveraging digital technologies to enhance operations and product development?

Nouryon leverages digital technologies to enhance operations and product development by integrating advanced digital tools such as artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT). This enhances efficiency, drives innovation, and strengthens customer engagement through data-driven insights, predictive modelling, and collaboration. Digitalization streamlines workflows, optimizes processes, and ensures agility and competitiveness, allowing us to deliver value and meet market demands effectively.

What are Nouryon's strategic goals for the next five to ten years?

Nouryon’s strategic goals for the next five to ten years focus on: Innovation and sustainability - Deliver innovative, sustainable solutions to meet customer needs, today and in the future; Targeting growth markets: Prioritize expanding and emerging markets, recruit top talent, and establish innovation centers; and Enhancing productivity: Improve cost and commercial productivity with a focus on continuous improvement.

We aim to lead the specialty chemicals industry by exceeding customer expectations, expanding our sustainable product range, and optimizing production facilities. India is a crucial part of our strategy, with investments aligned to support its growth and market needs.

How do geopolitical and economic changes impact Nouyon's operations and market strategies?

Geopolitical and economic changes impact Nouryon's operations and market strategies by causing supply chain disruptions, regulatory changes, and currency fluctuations.

To mitigate these risks, we: diversify our supplier base and invest in local sourcing; implement robust risk management and hedging strategies, monitor regulatory developments and adapt our strategies, and analyze market trends to align our product offerings and marketing.

We remain flexible and agile to seize growth opportunities and foster strong relationships with global partners. This proactive approach ensures the resilience and sustainability of our operations and market strategies.

How are you looking at growth opportunities in the India market for Nouryon with respect to greenfield and brownfield operations?

India's growing economy and demand for specialty chemicals offer us significant growth opportunities. Our new Innovation Center in Mumbai and the expanded office space exemplify our long-term commitment to growth in the region. Nouryon is also pursuing opportunities to optimize and expand existing facilities. We will continue to enhance our Global Service Center in Mumbai and evaluate the expansion of our manufacturing facility in Mahad. Nouryon's comprehensive approach to growth in India positions us well to capitalize on emerging opportunities and strengthen our leadership in the specialty chemicals industry.