ONE of the region's biggest employers was last night understood to be considering the sale of two of its regional operations.

Huntsman, which saved thousands of jobs on Teesside after buying a large section of ICI's operations in 1999, was last night rumoured to be in talks about the sale of its "cracker "plant, at Wilton, and its North Tees aromatics business, which employ about 800 people on Teesside.

However, industry experts have called into question whether a potential buyer exists and suggested that Huntsman was "testing the waters" after seeing its share price fall by 26 per cent.

Takeover speculation has been rife since Huntsman admitted that it was frustrated by market valuations of its businesses.

Since floating on the New York Stock Exchange in February last year, Huntsman has seen its share price fall from $23 a share to less than $17. US-owned Huntsman is believed to be considering the sale of its Base Chemicals and Polymers businesses, which run the cracker facility and the aromatics operations.

Saudi Arabian chemicals company Sabic, which recently shelved plans for a cracker plant in Holland, is thought to be interested.

Yesterday, Sabic said: "We continue to look at opportunities around the world that would fit into our core business model."

Huntsman reiterated what chief executive Peter Huntsman said in April when first-quarter results revealed a fall in revenues and earnings.

He said: "We are frustrated with the valuations that the market appears to place on our different businesses.

"We continue to evaluate available options for improving shareholder value and, as previously announced, we are aggressively pursuing the sale of certain of our Base Chemicals and Polymers assets and/or a spin-off of these segments."

But industry expert Stan Higgins last night thought it unlikely Huntsman had a buyer lined up.

Mr Higgins, the chief executive of the North-East Process Industry Cluster said Huntsman could be considering splitting the group in two to create more value.

"The fact the share price is falling suggests there isn't a buyer around," he said.

"Instead, they are checking the best way of getting value out of their business.

"They could be looking to split the business, like ICI did when it split and created several divisions. Pharmaceuticals company AstraZeneca, for example, went on to have a successful life of its own after ICI."

Anthony Platts, of Teesside stockbroker Wise Speke, said Huntsman may feel the group is worth more than its share price reflects.

"There is a possibility they could just be testing the market to get a truer valuation of the business by inviting talks," he said.

Last night, Mr Higgins said any sale of the cracker and aromatics business should not affect jobs.

He said: "If anybody if going to purchase it, then they are going to purchase it for growth."