Sao Paulo Water Crisis Hurts Business, Solvay Halts Units

Solvay SA halted production at some operations in Brazil amid a water shortage, expanding the list of companies affected by Sao Paulo’s worst drought in eight decades.

Solvay’s Rhodia chemical shut four of 22 output units at its Paulinia plant in Sao Paulo state because the river where it collects water is drying up, spokesman Roberto Custodio said by phone yesterday. The company is carrying out unscheduled maintenance on the units until water supplies return to normal.