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DOW Chemical has announced restructuring plans which will see it close 20 manufacturing facilities around the world and shed 2,400 jobs, representing 5% of its workforce.

The measures are designed to help the company save around US$500m/y and are necessary due to slow growth in the chemicals sector, according to CEO Andrew Liveris. The company’s Q3 results, announced today, have been disappointing, with sales of US$13.6bn down 10% on the same period last year. The decision follows hot on the heels of DuPont, which announced at its Q3 results conference on 23 October that it is cutting 1,500 jobs in a bid to save US$450m/y. DuPont also blamed poor growth.

Among the plants to close will be a high density polyethylene facility in Tessenderlo, Belgium, several performance materials facilities in Michigan and Ohio in the US, Birch Vale in the UK and Ribaforada in Spain, and an epoxy resins facility in Kina Ura, Japan. Several smaller manufacturing facilities will also be closed. The company said it would implement other cost-cutting measures, including reducing investment in non-priority areas.

“While these actions are difficult, they demonstrate our resolve to tightly manage operations – particularly in Europe – and mitigate the impact of current market dynamics,” says Liveris. “Earlier this year we announced targeted actions – levers we planned to pull to reduce costs and protect our earnings growth path. The interventions we are announcing today represent the next phase in our path to driving efficiency and prioritising our growth programmes.”

He adds that projects in areas where there are opportunities for expansion will continue, including in Dow AgroSciences, Dow Electronic Materials, and its Sadara joint venture with Saudi Aramco, which will see the construction of a world-scale integrated chemical complex at Jubail Industrial City II in Saudi Arabia.

Liveris warned at Dow’s Q2 results conference back in July that it would be a difficult year for the chemicals sector, thanks to downturns in Europe and North America and poor growth in China. He said then that the company would increase cost-cutting measures to mitigate the problem.