Chattanooga's Invista manufacturing plant, for many years known as the DuPont facility, soon may get a new owner.
Kordsa Inc., which operates in a portion of the North Access Road nylon fiber facility, is slated to acquire the assets and operations of the plant from Invista in mid-May, according to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.
The information is included in an application to transfer a hazardous waste corrective action permit from Invista to Kordsa.
"Kordsa Inc. will take responsibility for the corrective action as the permittee under the [permit]," said the document. The original permit was issued in 2008, according to the state.
Kordsa officials couldn't be reached for comment on Friday. Invista did not respond to inquiries seeking comment.
But, late last year, Kordsa officials said they were negotiating to buy its space at the plant and much of the rest of the facility.
Kordsa makes nylon used in tire cord fabric, ropes, belts and hoses. Invista sells raw material Kordsa uses in its production, officials said.
Kordsa employs about 190 people at the plant that was originally built and operated by DuPont.
Koch Industries, the parent company of Invista, announced last summer it was discontinuing nylon 6,6 polymer production in Chattanooga. That was expected to result in a significant reduction in its 300-person workforce, the company said then, and it later announced the layoff of 50 employees.
In September, Radici Group Performance Plastics agreed to purchase Invista's engineering polymer solutions business, including that production in Chattanooga. Radici said it expected to consolidate assets in Chattanooga with its existing manufacturing facilities in Ohio and Mexico.
"The impact of these restructuring activities on other businesses and assets located in the Chattanooga facility has not been finalized," Invista public affairs manager Amy Hodges said earlier.
Kordsa had predicted earlier its employee headcount will go up if the deal with Invista was reached because Kordsa will need more personnel to operate the part of the facility it doesn't currently run.
Invista bought the plant in 2004. Last summer, the company said production of the nylon 6,6 polymer would be shifted to two other facilities in South Carolina and Canada.
DuPont, in late 2015, announced it was closing the last of its operations at the plant. About 40 workers, including 26 employees and 14 contractors, lost their jobs.
At its peak more than four decades ago, DuPont was one of the city's biggest employers, with more than 5,000 workers.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.