Forward-Looking Statements
This section and other parts of this Annual Report on Form 10-K contain forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the federal securities law, that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements provide current expectations of future events based on certain assumptions and include any statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "estimate," "target," "project" and similar expressions, among others, generally identify “forward-looking statements,” which speak only as of the date the statements were made. The matters discussed in these forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to these differences include those discussed below and in the Item 1A, "Risk Factors."
Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and expectations of future events which may not be accurate or realized. Forward-looking statements also involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Chemours’ control. Important factors that may materially affect such forward-looking statements and projections include:
Additionally, there may be other risks and uncertainties that we are unable to identify at this time or that we do not currently expect to have a material impact on our business. The Company assumes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement for any reason, except as required by law.
Unless the context otherwise requires, references herein to “The Chemours Company,” “The Chemours Company, LLC,” “Chemours,” "the Company", "our company", “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to The Chemours Company and its consolidated subsidiaries. References herein to “DuPont” refers to E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries (other than Chemours and its consolidated subsidiaries), unless the context otherwise requires.
PART I
Item 1. BUSINESS
Overview
Chemours, a leading global provider of performance chemicals, began operating as an independent public company on July 1, 2015 (the Distribution Date) after separating from E. I. du Pont de Nemours (DuPont). We have three reporting segments: Titanium Technologies, Fluoroproducts and Chemical Solutions. Our products are key inputs into end-products and processes in a variety of industries. Our Titanium Technologies segment is the leading global producer of titanium dioxide (TiO2), a premium white pigment used to deliver whiteness, brightness, opacity and protection in a variety of applications. Our Fluoroproducts segment is a leading global provider of fluoroproducts, such as refrigerants and industrial fluoropolymer resins. Our Chemical Solutions segment is the leading North American provider of industrial and specialty chemicals used in gold production, oil refining, agriculture, industrial polymers and other industries.
Effective prior to the opening of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on July 1, 2015, DuPont completed the separation of the businesses comprising DuPont’s Performance Chemicals reporting segment, and certain other assets and liabilities, into Chemours, a separate and distinct public company. The separation was completed by way of a distribution of all of the then-outstanding shares of common stock of Chemours through a dividend in kind of Chemours’ common stock (par value $0.01) to holders of DuPont common stock (par value $0.30) as of the close of business on June 23, 2015 (the Record Date) (the transaction is referred to herein as the Distribution).
On the Distribution Date, each holder of DuPont's common stock received one share of Chemours' common stock for every five shares of DuPont's common stock held on the Record Date. The spin-off was completed pursuant to a separation agreement and other agreements with DuPont related to the spin-off, including an employee matters agreement, a tax matters agreement, a transition services agreement and an intellectual property cross-license agreement. These agreements govern the relationship between Chemours and DuPont following the spin-off and provided for the allocation of various assets, liabilities, rights and obligations. These agreements also include arrangements for transition services to be provided by DuPont to Chemours.
We operate 35 production facilities located in 11 countries and serve more than 5,000 customers across a wide range of end markets in more than 130 countries. The following chart illustrates the global scope of our businesses:
Chemours is committed to creating value for our customers through the reliable delivery of high quality products and services around the globe. We create value for customers and stockholders through (i) operational excellence and asset efficiency, which includes our commitment to safety and environmental stewardship, (ii) strong customer focus to produce innovative, high-performance products, (iii) focus on cash flow generation through optimization of our cost structure, and improvement in working capital and supply chain efficiencies through our transformation plan (described in Chemours Strategy section below), (iv) organic growth and (v) creation of an organization that is committed to our corporate values of safety, customer appreciation, simplicity, collective entrepreneurship and integrity.
Many of Chemours' commercial and industrial relationships have been in place for decades. Our customers are comprised of a diverse group of companies, many of which are leaders in their respective industries. Our sales are not materially dependent on any single customer. As of December 31, 2015, no one individual customer balance represented more than five percent of Chemours’ total outstanding receivables balance and no single customer represented more than ten percent of our sales.
Chemours Five-Point Transformation Plan
Immediately after Chemours was launched as an independent public company, we began to make changes to our organization, cost structure and portfolio of businesses to transform our company into a higher growth chemistry company. The objectives of our multi-year five-point transformation plan are to improve our financial performance, streamline and strengthen our portfolio and reduce our leverage by:
Through cost reduction and growth, Chemours expects the transformation plan to deliver $500 million of incremental Adjusted EBITDA improvement over 2015 through 2017. Based on our anticipated cost reduction and growth initiatives, we would expect an approximately similar improvement in pre-tax income. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure. For a discussion of our use of non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliations to the closest GAAP financial measures, see our Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Non-GAAP Financial Measures in Item 7. Through a combination of higher free cash flow from operations, lower capital spending, and potential proceeds from asset sales, the Company anticipates reducing its leverage ratio (net debt to Adjusted EBITDA) to approximately three times by 2017. This plan will allow us to narrow our focus to businesses with the highest return and earnings growth potential.