Corporate history of Cognis
February 1999: The Management Board of Henkel KGaA proposes to carve out the chemicals business and set it up as a legally independent entity.
April 1999: Takeover of Laboratoires Sérobiologiques, an international supplier of active ingredients for the cosmetics and food industry.
August 1999: Cognis Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG is launched as 100 percent subsidiary of Henkel KGaA.
September 1999: Cognis parts with the majority of its European activities in paper chemicals.
December 1999: The Holding Cognis B.V., located in Roermond, The Netherlands, takes over the international business management.
February 2000: Cognis acquires the specialty chemicals business of the Spanish chemical company Hispano Química.
November 2000: Henkel states decision to sell Cognis, to focus on Brands and Technologies.
May 2001: Cognis acquires Laboratories Dr. Vinyals S.A., in Barcelona, an enterprise specializing in botanical extracts for cosmetics.
November 2001: Three private equity investors – Permira Funds, GS Capital Partners and SV Life Sciences Funds – become the new owners of Cognis.
January 2002: CEO Dr. Harald Wulff hands over his position to Dr. Antonio Trius. Cognis moves its head office to Düsseldorf.
February 2002: Cognis splits its businesses into five strategic business units: Oleochemicals, Care Chemicals, Nutrition & Health, Process Chemicals and Functional Products.
August 2002: Cognis and the Norwegian research and development company, Natural ASA, sign an agreement which grants Cognis a global exclusive license for manufacturing and marketing Tonalin CLA. The conjugated linoleic acids produced from safflower oil are used in food products and dietary supplements to reduce body fat mass.
February 2003: Cognis acquires Laporte Performance Chemicals, a subsidiary of Degussa AG. Laporte is a leading producer of synthetic lubricants (polyalkylene glycols) and components for environmentally friendly paint systems. It also manufactures acrylate-based multifunctional monomers for coatings, and ester-based rubber chemicals and plastic additives.
February 2003: Sale of Protina Lactovit, a developer and manufacturer of additives for meat preparation and convenience food, to Palc SAS.
March 2003: Sale of Synco, a producer of master batches for the packaging, house wares and electronic industries, to British Vita VLC.
March 2003: Sale of the Fragrances & Specialties business to Kao Chemicals.
March 2004: Arnold Kiel replaces Joachim Söhngen as the company’s Chief Financial Officer.
May 2004: Sale of PVC Stabilizers business, a segment of the Plastics Technology business unit, to a consortium comprising Reagens SpA of Bologna, Italy, and Singapore-based Sun Ace Kakoh Pte. Ltd.
November 2004: Cognis and Eternal Chemical Co., Ltd. (Taiwan) found the joint venture Eternal Specialty Chemical Co., Ltd. (Zhuhai, China) for the production of energy cure acrylates for the Asian market.
December 2004: Cognis Thai Ltd. and Thai Olefins Public Company Ltd. agree the joint venture for the production and marketing of fatty alcohol ethoxylates in the Asia-Pacific region. This new company will be located in Rayong (Thailand) and operate under the name of Thai Ethoxylate Company Ltd.
January 2005: Cognis moves its head office from Düsseldorf to Monheim.
February 2006: Cognis transfers its global oleochemicals business, comprising fatty acids, glycerin, oilfield chemicals, ozone acids, and plastics technology, to its existing 50:50 joint venture with Golden Hope Plantations Berhad (since November 2007: Sime Darby Berhad). The expanded joint venture, known as Cognis Oleochemicals (M) Sdn. Bhd. and headquartered in Malaysia, remains a subsidiary of the Cognis Group.
March 2006: Cognis acquires Cosmetic Rheologies Ltd. Headquartered in Manchester, UK, the polymer specialist has a strong expertise in polymer research and manufacture as well as in formulation development, and provides rheology modifiers and conditioning agents.
May 2006: Cognis and leading privately-owned manufacturer of natural ingredients, WILD, sign an agreement on global cooperation in the field of food applications. The companies will jointly develop new products and systems and will work closely together in the field of marketing and sales.
May 2006: Cognis Thai Ltd. and Thai Oleochemicals Company Ltd., a subsidiary of PTT Chemical Public Company Ltd., have agreed to enter into a 50:50 joint venture for the production and marketing of fatty alcohols. The joint venture, which will trade under the name of Thai Fatty Alcohols Company Ltd., will be the first company to produce refined fatty alcohols in Thailand.
May 2006: Cognis acquires Napro Pharma AS, a Norwegian manufacturer of high-quality omega-3 fish oils for the nutrition industry. The Napro Pharma product portfolio further strengthens Cognis’ position as a leading supplier of natural-source ingredients for the dietary supplement and functional food markets.
October 2006: Cognis expands its Management Board. Paul Allen (Executive Vice President Funtional Products), Stephane Baseden (Executive Vice President Nutrition & Health) and Richard Ridinger (Executive Vice President Care Chemicals) have been appointed to the Management Board.
November 2006: Klaus Edelmann replaces Arnold Kiel as the company’s Chief Financial Officer.
July 2007: As of July 1, 2007, Cognis’ Process Chemicals strategic business trades as an independent, wholly owned subsidiary under the new name of Pulcra Chemicals GmbH. The carve-out represents a decisive step towards ensuring long-term competitiveness and further enhancing product and service quality for customers in the fiber, textile, and leather industries.
February 2008: Cognis opens a liaison office in Mumbai, India. The office is responsible for strengthening relationships with existing customers, identifying and initiating new business opportunities, and promoting the Cognis brand in local markets.
March 2008: Cognis acquires an interest in InterMed Discovery GmbH and at the same time signs a cooperation agreement. The global specialty chemicals supplier has thus secured access to one of the world’s largest natural product data bases and exclusive access to selected potential active ingredients for specific applications in functional foods, dietary supplements as well as personal and home care products.
October 2008: Cognis sells its subsidiary Pulcra Chemicals to Fashion Chemicals GmbH & Co. KG, an investor backed mainly by DSD Deri Sanayicileri Dis Ticaret A.S). The transaction follows an agreement from July 2008. The sale is in line with Cognis’ strategy of focusing on its core businesses driven by the wellness and sustainability trends.
November 2008: Cognis sells its 50-percent stake in the Cognis Oleochemicals joint venture (effective June 30, 2008) to PTT Chemical International Private Ltd., a Singapore based wholly owned subsidiary of PTT Chemical Public Company Limited. A stable supply of oleochemical basestocks is secured, as Cognis is intending to continue sourcing products from the business under normal third party commercial terms.