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THE buyer of Ineos Vinyls (now Vinyls Italia), Fiorenzo Sartor, is to sue UK chemicals giant Ineos for €200m ($257m).

Vinyls Italia produces polyvinyl chloride and vinyl chloride monomer, or did, until June 2009 when Sartor declared the company insolvent, just two months after purchasing it. Ineos Vinyls had built up debts with some of its suppliers and to compensate for this, Ineos promised to supply raw materials at a discounted price, an agreement signed into the purchase contract. Sartor’s acquisition was based on this agreement, but he says that Ineos has not honoured it, making the business too expensive to run and rendering restructuring impossible.

The €200m claim is based on what Vinyls Italia should have made in the subsequent time period if the agreement had been honoured. Sartor is making a further claim for damage to his reputation, although this amount has not been disclosed.

Ineos tells tce that it has not yet received notice of the legal action and adds: “Any notification of this nature will be carefully considered and an appropriate response issued. The company has acted in good faith throughout this transaction and the extended due diligence. It will vigorously defend its position.”

Meanwhile, Vinyls Italia’s administrators have announced a new tender date of 29 July for the company. The previous bidder, Ramco of Qatar, pulled out in June.