Kickstart: So much for a relaxing retirement

When you daydream about what retirement will look like, do you think of golf? Gardening? Maybe spending time with the grandkids?

Chris Pappas, who stepped down as CEO of materials supplier Trinseo in 2019, is spending it as executive director of FirstEnergy Corp., an Ohio utility that just terminated CEO Charles Jones and two senior vice presidents "effective immediately." FirstEnergy has found itself embroiled in a scandal that has also seen Ohio officials arrested and charged in a bribery scandal.

It's a long and complicated story that involves a former Ohio Speaker of the House and $61 million in bribes. You can find more from our sister publication Crain's Cleveland Business here.

Pappas, who remained on the Trinseo board until October 2020, will serve as executive director in a nonmanagement role, FirstEnergy said. Steven E. Strah, FirstEnergy's president, has been named acting CEO.

A new name in automotive battery production may be rolling out soon as South Korea's LG Chem prepares to spin off its battery division.

As Reuters notes, the independent company will be in a position to challenge for the No. 1 position in lithium-ion battery production and already is it a strong position in Europe.

No name has been announced for the LG spinoff.

Europe is expected to invest more in battery production growth in the future, with German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier saying the region needs to produce at least 30 percent of the world's batteries by 2030 to be a competitor globally, according to our sister paper Automotive News Europe.

Berry Global Group Inc. has introduced the "Divinity" flip-top closure for tubes, a cap made solely of high density polyethylene. When combined with one of its two PE-only tubes, the combination represents a single-substrate package that is easier to recycle.

Tubes typically include multiple materials, so the PE tubes were a breakthrough in the industry, first unveiled by Colgate-Palmolive in 2019. Berry says it is the only manufacturer of HDPE flip-top caps for tubes, putting it in a prime spot for customers seeking something more sustainable.

Currently, consumers who buy the recyclable tubes are told to remove the closure. Now they will be able to keep the cap on the tube, Berry says.

"Keeping the cap on makes it easy to recycle and reduces any confusion for the consumer," says Diane Marret, sustainability director for Berry Global. "It also prevents the closure from being discarded during sortation due to its small size."