What Esseco does

Esseco is a privately held Italian family-owned industrial chemicals group with roots dating to 1878, operating across 15 countries with over 1,000 employees and consolidated turnover of EUR 449 million (2020). The group is structured around three divisions covering organic, inorganic, and oenological chemistry, with an Industrial Division created in November 2021 that consolidates subsidiaries including Esseco UK, Altair Chimica, Altair Iberica, Hydrochem Italia, and Zolfindustria under a unified industrial strategy led by Roberto Vagheggi. Esseco UK Limited, headquartered in Wakefield, England, is the primary UK operating entity, producing inorganic chemicals at a COMAH upper-tier, ISO 9001-certified site that operates 24/7 and supplies customers across de-icing, oilfield services, water treatment, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, animal feed, agriculture, flue gas treatment, metal treatment, and pulp and paper.

The company's core technology centres on sulphur-based chemical manufacturing, with proprietary processes such as the patented SAFEGRIP® ECO2 composite freezing-point depressant (a potassium acetate/formate blend delivering 2-3x longer holdover time than standard de-icers) and a newly commissioned sulphur burner with waste heat recovery that doubles production capacity while reducing the site's carbon footprint by 68% and fossil fuel use by 95%. Esseco manufactures a broad portfolio spanning de-icing fluids and granules (SAFEGRIP® ECO2, TM Plus, SF, PLUS), potassium formate and acetate drilling brines, sodium/potassium/ammonium sulphites and bisulphites for water treatment and oxygen scavenging, acid-based eubiotics for animal feed, photographic-grade ammonium thiosulphate, and aqueous industrial cleaners serving aerospace and automotive applications.

Esseco operates a B2B direct sales motion, supplying products in bulk tankers, 200-litre drums, and 1000-litre IBCs to industrial customers with quote-based pricing. Vertical integration within the Esseco Group secures raw-material inputs (potassium hydroxide from Altair, potassium formate from ADDCON Nordic), and the company has signed a five-year capital delivery partnership with Wood to support site upgrades at Wakefield. In 2026 the group agreed to acquire INOVYN Produzione Italia SpA from INEOS Inovyn, adding Italy's largest domestic chlor-alkali plant at Rosignano and the Tavazzano site, with closing subject to regulatory approval.

Name

Esseco

Legal name

Esseco UK Limited

Website

https://essecouk.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Esseco is an Italian family-owned industrial chemicals group producing inorganic chemicals and wine-making products across de-icing, oilfield, water treatment, food, pharmaceutical, and agricultural sectors, operating in 15 countries with over 1,000 employees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Chemicals Manufacturing

NAICS

Other Basic Inorganic Chemical Manufacturing (325180)

SIC

Industrial Inorganic Chemicals (2810)

akta.pro primary industry

Oilfield & Refining Specialty Chemicals (IMAEABAI)

Keywords

• Industrial chemical manufacturing
• De-icing solutions
• Water treatment chemicals
• Oilfield drilling fluids
• Inorganic chemical production

Headquarters

HQ city

Wakefield

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Chemical Products Manufacturing and Distribution: Esseco UK manufactures and sells chemical products including sulphites, bisulphites, formates, acetates, carbonates, and de-icing solutions to industrial customers across multiple sectors. Products are supplied in various packaging formats (bulk tankers, drums, IBCs).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Esseco UK manufactures and sells inorganic industrial chemicals including sulphites, bisulphites, formates, acetates, carbonates, de-icing solutions (SAFEGRIP® product line), and process chemicals to B2B industrial customers. Products are packaged in bulk tankers, 200 litre drums, and 1000 litre IBCs and supplied to sectors including oilfield services, water treatment, de-icing, food processing, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and pulp and paper.

Product overview

Esseco UK is a chemical manufacturing company producing a broad portfolio of industrial chemical products including de-icing/anti-icing solutions (SAFEGRIP® product line including ECO2, TM Plus, SF, PLUS, and FR variants), oilfield services products (potassium formate brines, sulphites and bisulphites for drilling fluids and oxygen scavenging), water treatment chemicals (sodium/potassium/ammonium sulphites and bisulphites), metal treatment products, agricultural inputs (acid-based eubiotics, thiosulphate fertilizers, ferric ammonium citrate), pharmaceutical intermediates, food-grade chemicals, and precision industrial cleaners. The product range spans solutions, crystals, and formulated blends across various chemical categories including formates, acetates, carbonates, sulphites, bisulphites, and thiosulphates. The company operates as part of the Esseco Industrial division within the Esseco Group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SAFEGRIP® ECO2: Super-high active liquid de-icer for use on airport runways, tunnels and bridges with potassium acetate/formate formulation
• SAFEGRIP® TM Plus
• SAFEGRIP® SF
• SAFEGRIP® PLUS
• THIOFERT K

Products and services

• SAFEGRIP® ECO2 Super-high active liquid de-icer for airport runways, tunnels and bridges, formulated as a proprietary composite freezing point depressant mixture of potassium acetate/formate providing holdover time up to 2-3 times longer than standard products.
• SAFEGRIP® TM Plus Thickened liquid de-icer for roads, tunnels and bridges, manufactured from potassium hydroxide, glacial acetic acid and corrosion inhibitors, with a freezing point below -60°C.
• SAFEGRIP® SF White granular solid de-icer for airport runways, taxiways, tunnels and bridges, manufactured from sodium formate and corrosion inhibitors.
• SAFEGRIP® PLUS Thickened liquid de-icer for airport runways, taxiways, tunnels and bridges featuring advanced corrosion inhibitor technology.
• Potassium Formate Brine Solutions High-density drilling and completion fluids supplied in solution and crystal forms, naturally weighted to reduce sag in drilling operations with corrosion protection and environmental performance benefits for oilfield services customers.
• Potassium Carbonate Solutions Clear near-colourless 50% potassium carbonate solution manufactured from potassium hydroxide and carbon dioxide, used in chemical, cocoa, catalyst and oil and gas industries.
• Potassium Acetate Solutions and Crystals Potassium acetate solutions at 52% and 57% concentrations and crystalline forms supplied for pharmaceutical, oilfield and specialised de-icer industries.
• Sodium Bisulphite Solutions HP High-purity sodium bisulphite solutions in 10% to 25% SO2 concentrations for oxygen scavenging, food preservation and chlorine removal, conforming to food additive E222 and drinking water treatment standards (BS EN 12120:2012).
• Ammonium Bisulphite Solutions Ammonium bisulphite solutions supplied at 60%, 65% and 70% concentrations for food, oilfield services and water treatment applications, including oxygen scavenging.
• Sodium Sulphite Solutions 20% sodium sulphite solution for pulp and paper mills, manufactured from sulphur dioxide and sodium alkali for paper bleaching and process applications.
• Potassium Sulphite Solution 45% potassium sulphite solution manufactured from sulphur dioxide and potassium hydroxide, for industrial water treatment and photographic chemical applications.
• Potassium Hydroxide Solution 50% 50% potassium hydroxide solution used in the production of liquid soaps, silicates, fertilisers, alkaline batteries and potassium salts.
• Ammonium Thiosulphate Solution 60% 60% ammonium thiosulphate solution for photographic chemicals in fixer baths, conforming to BS 3310:1998 and ISO 3619:1976 standards.
• Sodium Allyl Sulphonate Solutions 25% and 35% sodium allyl sulphonate solutions for nickel electroplating formulations and water treatment polymer manufacture.
• Catalysed Sodium Bisulphite Solutions (Cobalt/Nickel) Cobalt and nickel catalysed sodium bisulphite solutions for steam boiler treatment to remove dissolved oxygen.
• Catalysed Ammonium Bisulphite Solutions (Nickel) Nickel catalysed ammonium bisulphite solutions at 65% and 70% for oxygen scavenging in the oil industry.
• Acid-Based Eubiotics (Ammonium Formate/Propionate Solution Mixture) Clear near-colourless acid-based eubiotic liquid containing approximately 50% ammonium formate, 20% ammonium propionate and 6% free acid, manufactured from ammonia solution, formic acid and propionic acid for use in poultry feeds.
• Thiofert K Potassium thiosulphate solution used as a component in high-performing liquid fertiliser formulations supplying potassium and sulphur to crops.
• Ferric Ammonium Citrate Solution Dark brown ferric ammonium citrate solution providing iron, nitrogen and sulphur for agricultural and horticultural applications.
• Demineralised Water Purified demineralised water produced from a purpose-built plant removing minerals and salt ions, supplied for industrial applications.
• Esseco Aqueous Cleaner Range Aqueous industrial cleaner concentrates (Esseco Low Foam Spray Cleaner, Esseco Aqueous Cleaner M-Aero, Aquaworks MM Spray Cleaner) for precision cleaning in optical lens, automotive and aerospace industries.

Quantifiable outcome

• 16% reduction in global warming potential (GWP) for SAFEGRIP® ECO2
• +6 more outcomes

Segments11 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• WoodcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2025Five-year capital delivery partner contract for Esseco UK's chemical production facility in Wakefield, England. Wood provides engineering, procurement, and construction services including site upgrades and modifications to ensure operational reliability and enhance productivity.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Kemira: Finnish specialty chemicals company serving water treatment, oilfield, and pulp & paper with a comparable inorganic and process-chemical portfolio — directly overlapping Esseco UK's primary customer segments.
• Clariant: Swiss specialty chemicals manufacturer with de-icing/anti-icing fluids (Safeway, Clariant De-icing Technology) and oilfield process chemicals — directly competing with Esseco's SAFEGRIP® de-icer line and oilfield brines.
• Nouryon: Dutch global specialty chemicals company (formerly AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals) producing inorganic chemicals, surfactants, and process chemicals — closely comparable to Esseco's inorganic portfolio.
• Tessenderlo Group: Belgian specialty chemicals group producing sulphites, crop solutions, and industrial inorganic chemicals — direct overlap with Esseco UK's sulphite/bisulphite and agricultural chemical lines.
• INEOS Inovyn: European chlor-alkali and PVC producer — the counterparty selling Italian chlor-alkali assets to Esseco Industrial; a direct peer in the inorganic commodity space Esseco is moving into.
• Hawkins, Inc. US specialty chemical manufacturer and distributor serving water treatment, food, and industrial end markets with a comparable B2B model and inorganic product mix.
• Perstorp: Swedish specialty chemicals producer of formates, propionates, and acid-based feed additives — directly comparable to Esseco UK's potassium formate brines and acid-based eubiotics for animal feed.

Broad incumbents

• Solvay: Belgian global chemical major producing soda ash, sodium bicarbonate, and specialty inorganic chemicals — overlapping with Esseco UK in inorganic chemistry but operating at vastly larger scale across many other product families.
• BASF: World's largest chemical company with broad inorganic and specialty chemical offerings across water treatment, oilfield, agriculture, and de-icing — broad incumbent with overlapping product lines.
• Lanxess: German specialty chemicals company with inorganic pigments, material protection, and industrial process chemicals — broad incumbent with portfolio overlap to Esseco UK's inorganic and process chemicals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Esseco