In September 2023, Celanese formed a food ingredients joint venture (Nutrinova) with Mitsui, contributing its food ingredients business while retaining a 30% interest. This impacted the Engineered Materials segment, with a gain on the transaction of $515 million included in Gain (loss) on disposition of businesses and assets, net.

In October 2023, Celanese announced the intended closure of its Polyamide 66 and High-Performance Nylon polymerization units at its facility in Uentrop, Germany to optimize production costs across its global network. The exit and shutdown costs related to the closure were $52 million.

On November 4, 2024, the Company announced its intent to reduce its quarterly dividend by approximately 95 percent beginning in the first quarter of 2025. This indicates a shift in capital allocation strategy, likely towards debt reduction.

Celanese is committed to identifying and implementing actions to improve long-term growth and value creation. Celanese is actively managing its business to maintain and improve cash flow and reduce its debt.

There is a possibility that Celanese will not be able to realize the anticipated benefits of the Mobility & Materials business, including synergies and growth opportunities, whether as a result of difficulties arising from the operation of the M&M Business or other unanticipated delays, costs, inefficiencies or liabilities.

In furtherance of our deleveraging efforts, we have paused our share repurchase program and are in the process of evaluating additional cash generation or conservation opportunities.

However, we expect the weakened demand environment, as discussed below, to continue to adversely impact our cash generation in the near-term.

If any issues raised in the audits described above are resolved in a manner inconsistent with the Company's expectations or the Company is unsuccessful in defending its positions, the Company could be required to adjust its provision for income taxes in the period such resolution occurs.

Potential liability for remedial actions and increased costs under existing or future environmental, health and safety regulations, including those relating to climate change or other sustainability matters.

Demand conditions and incremental industry production capacity resulted in elevated industry competitive dynamics and continuing pricing pressure across end-markets.

We hold geographically balanced global positions and participate in diversified end-use applications.

The Company's strategic focus is on executing within this integrated chain model and less on driving product-specific revenue.

In October 2023, Celanese announced the intended closure of its Polyamide 66 and High-Performance Nylon polymerization units at its facility in Uentrop, Germany to optimize production costs across its global network.

We attempt to address increases in raw materials costs through appropriate pricing actions.

Lower spending of $64 million, primarily driven by a reduction in distribution and administrative costs.

In Engineered Materials, at our Nanjing, China facility, our expansions of (1) the compounding plant is in construction and we are accelerating completion to meet demand and (2) the new liquid crystal polymer plant are on schedule and in construction.

Our energy optimization productivity and greenhouse gas reduction project at our polyoxymethylene unit in Frankfurt, Germany is on schedule in detailed engineering design.

In the Acetyl Chain, our planned expansion of our vinyl acetate ethylene emulsion plant in Frankfurt, Germany is in construction and on schedule for start-up in the second quarter of 2025.

On November 4, 2024, the Company announced its intent to reduce its quarterly dividend by approximately 95 percent beginning in the first quarter of 2025.

In furtherance of our deleveraging efforts, we have paused our share repurchase program and are in the process of evaluating additional cash generation or conservation opportunities.

We have focused our near-term capital expenditures on required maintenance projects, productivity improvements, and selected short-term growth projects, as we continue to prioritize deleveraging and expect total capital expenditures to be approximately $425 million in 2024.

Our energy optimization productivity and greenhouse gas reduction project at our polyoxymethylene unit in Frankfurt, Germany is on schedule in detailed engineering design.

Due to its industrial history and through retained contractual and legal obligations, the Company has the obligation to remediate specific areas on its own sites as well as on divested, demerger, orphan or U.S. Superfund sites.

The Company is subject to environmental laws and regulations worldwide that impose limitations on the discharge of pollutants into the air and water, establish standards for the treatment, storage and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes, and impose record keeping and notification requirements.

During the third quarter of 2024, we experienced challenging demand conditions across several end-markets, including rapid and acute downturns in the Western Hemisphere automotive and industrial end-markets, impacting our Engineering Materials segment, as well as persistent demand weakness in paints, coatings, and construction, impacting our Acetyl Chain segment.

We expect demand conditions to temporarily worsen in the fourth quarter of 2024, as automotive and industrial end-markets react to recent dynamics by destocking, which we expect to be largely contained to the fourth quarter of 2024.

We will also continue to closely monitor the impact of, and responses to, geopolitical effects on demand conditions and the supply chain.