Goodyear agrees sale of rubber units for $650m

Akron, Ohio – Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has announced an agreement to sell the majority of its ‘chemical’ business to Gemspring Capital Management LLC.

Valued at around $650 million, the deal covers Goodyear Chemical facilities in Houston and Beaumont, Texas, and a related research office in Akron, Ohio.

Goodyear Chemical produces a range of synthetic rubber materials in North America for automotive aftermarket as well as consumer and industrial applications.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approval, as well as other customary closing conditions and is expected to close by late 2025.

Goodyear will retain its ‘chemical’ facilities in Niagara Falls, New York, and Bayport, Texas, and its rights to the products produced at such facilities.

The group added that it intends to use transaction proceeds “to reduce leverage and fund initiatives” linked to its on-going transformation plans.

The sale, which includes a long-term supply agreement, follows a previously announced strategic review of the business as part of a Goodyear restructuring plan.

"With the sale of our chemical business, we continue to demonstrate our commitment to optimising our portfolio and creating shareholder value," said Mark Stewart , Goodyear CEO and president.

Goodyear Chemicals mainly produces butadiene rubber, isoprene rubber and solution styrene-butadiene rubber, at its sites in Bayport, Beaumont and Houston, and also operates a rubber antioxidants facility in Niagara Falls.

According to data from the International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers, in 2023 Goodyear was the world's eighth-largest synthetic rubber producer with an annual capacity of 725 kilotonnes.