Note 5 - Investment in TiO₂ manufacturing joint venture:

We own a 50% interest in Louisiana Pigment Company, L.P. (LPC). LPC is a manufacturing joint venture whose other 50%-owner is Tioxide Americas LLC (Tioxide). Tioxide is a subsidiary of Huntsman Corporation. LPC owns and operates a chloride-process TiO₂ plant in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

We and Tioxide are both required to purchase one-half of the TiO₂ produced by LPC, unless we and Tioxide agree otherwise (such as in 2015, when we purchased approximately 52% of the production from the plant). LPC operates on a break-even basis and, accordingly, we report no equity in earnings of LPC. Each owner’s acquisition transfer price for its share of the TiO₂ produced is equal to its share of the joint venture’s production costs and interest expense, if any. Our share of net cost is reported as cost of sales as the related TiO₂ acquired from LPC is sold. We report distributions we receive from LPC, which generally relate to excess cash generated by LPC from its non-cash production costs, and contributions we make to LPC, which generally relate to cash required by LPC when it builds working capital, as part of our cash flows from operating activities in our Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. The components of our net distributions from LPC are shown in the table below.

 

 

Summary balance sheets of LPC are shown below:

 

 

Summary income statements of LPC are shown below: