May 9, 2011 - Canadian sulfuric acid producer Chemtrade Logistics is buying another Canadian producer of sulfur-based chemicals, Marsulex, in a deal valued at $434 million.  Chemtrade makes sulfuric acid, liquid sulfur dioxide, and sodium hydrosulfite. It generated $538 million in sales in 2010.  Marsulex's 2010 revenues were $300 million. It also makes sulfuric acid and liquid sulfur dioxide, as well as other sulfur chemicals such as aluminum sulfate, sodium bisulfate, and ammonium sulfate. In addition, it offers services to refineries such as the processing of hydrogen sulfide.  In a conference call with analysts about the deal last Thursday, Chemtrade's CEO Mark Davis, said aluminum sulfate, used in water treatment, will be an important addition to its product line. In addition, Marsulex has a particularly strong business in providing services to the refineries in Alberta that process bitumen from the oil sands.  Marsulex's environmental technologies unit--which offers air quality compliance systems and services to electric utilities, chemical plants, and other industrial customers--isn't included in the deal because such operations aren't part of Chemtrade's core businesses. That unit is being spun off under a holding company, Investis. Marsulex shareholders can either receive all cash from Chemtrade or some cash and shares of Investis.  The parties expect the deal to close in June.

October 5, 2009 - Marsulex Inc. has applied to amend its air pollution permit to replace an instantaneous threshold with a less restrictive emission limit, but also to reduce the hourly average concentration limit of sulfur dioxide emissions.  The changes would not affect the stricter daily limits imposed on the plant in the BCR industrial site by the B.C. Ministry of Environment following an incident in the summer of 2006 when a higher than normal concentration of sulphur dioxide belched out of its smokestack during a routine startup.  "What we've done here is spent a lot of money, and done a lot of great things for emission reductions. We want to be recognized for that," Marsulex plant manager Randy Sarrazin said Thursday. "But at the same time, we want to make sure the public is aware that the tweaking (to the permit) we are doing is not going to be dangerous to the public environment."  Sarrazin says the company has already spent $9 million in equipment upgrades since 2007 to modernize the plant - and plans to spend another $3 million. Those equipment upgrades - including the replacement of its furnace and sulphur converter - have cut sulphur dioxide emissions in half, said Sarrazin. The permit changes have reduced the sulphur dioxide emissions cap by 27 per cent to 475 kilograms a day.  The company is in the midst of a 30-day consultation period, which includes notifying its neighbours in the BCR industrial site of its permit amendment request. It has also notified the city's air quality advocacy group, the People's Action Committee for Healthy Air.
The plant has been operating under a temporary permit, and the changes which it wishes to amend, go into effect on Nov. 1, noted Sarrazin.  The decision on the permit amendment will be made by the B.C. Ministry of Environment.  The permit changes that Marsulex are seeking include replacing an instantaneous maximum limit of 2,100 parts per million of sulfur dioxide, with an average concentration of the same level over a 15-minute period. (Sarrazin says that start-ups with the new equipment have shown they would exceed that instantaneous threshold for 30 seconds to one minute).   The concentration of sulphur dioxide during the 2006 incident was an issue.  During the startup on Aug. 9, 2006, the plant's analyzer showed sulphur dioxide concentration levels exceeded 1,653 parts per million for more than seven minutes, a Prince George court heard during a case in 2008, in which Marsulex pleaded guilty to two environmental charges in connection with the release of the concentrated plume of sulphur dioxide from its plant.   The plume, which descended on the neighbouring Canfor Rustad Bros. sawmill, sent some sawmill workers to the hospital.  Another permit amendment Marsulex is seeking - in part, in exchange for replacing the instantaneous threshold, says Sarrazin - would reduce the allowed hourly concentration from 1,200 parts per million to 1,000 parts per million.   The company is also applying to remove an April 30 deadline when shutdown/startup guideline and practices must be available each year, to simply, at the request of provincial environment ministry staff. The guidelines and practices would still need to be reviewed annually by a meteorologist and engineer by March 31.  Marsulex is also seeking a permit amendment that would delay when it has to deliver an air dispersion modelling report to Oct. 31, 2010 from March 31 of the same year.  Marsulex, which has operated since 1967 and employs 18 people, provides chemicals to Northern Interior pulp mills.
The People's Action Committee for Healthy Air is reserving judgment on the permit amendment request until it receives answers to its questions to Marsulex.  "I think they made a significant improvement last year, so, as far as I'm concerned it's come a long ways, but if they are trying to take a step backwards, we are concerned," said Dave Fuller, president of the air quality committee.  The air quality advocacy group, formed in 2006, has been pushing for industry to cut their air pollution emissions.  Marsulex is the fourth largest source of sulfur dioxide emissions at 111 tonnes, according to 2008 data from the National Pollution Release Inventory. Canfor's pulp mills top the inventory list for sulfur dioxide in the city, with its P.G. Pulp and Paper and Intercontinental mills producing 2,501 tonnes and its Northwood mill producing another 675 tonnes. Husky Energy produced 675 tonnes of sulfur dioxide, according to the 2008 data.  B.C. Ministry of Environment officials could not be reached immediately for comment on Thursday.