The next phase appears set to begin for ailing French PVC producer Kem One (Lyon; www.kemone.com), as the list of eight prospective buyers now begin to prepare detailed proposals to submit to the local French court. Deeming all of the candidates "serious", the commercial court of Lyon recently decided to extend the deadline by two months to give appropriate time for drawing up and submitting detailed offers from the interested parties. Companies now have until 9 September to turn in their plans for purchasing Kem One with the next court hearing to examine the offers to be held 26 September.

The court's decision to provide more time was also influenced by the fact that the troubled company's activities continue to be backed throughout the observation period – see Plasteurope.com of 21.06.2013. Thus, the company's seven production sites are still running in "business as usual" mode and the management of Kem One, with support from the French government, says it is "fully committed" to finding a sustainable solution for the traditional business. Kem One claims it is Europe's third-largest producer of PVC with revenues in excess of EUR 1 bn.