Hexion, Huntsman merger cleared by EU; subject to conditions

Tag : Formulated Epoxy


BRUSSELS (Thomson Financial) - The European Commission said it hascleared the merger of Hexion Specialty Chemicals Inc. and HuntsmanCorp., subject to conditions.
Hexion must divest epoxy production and R&D facilities in Germanyand in the United States to alleviate competition concerns.
The commission said the parties' activities overlap at all threelevels of the epoxy value chain (production of inputs, componentsand formulated systems) and lead to a number of horizontally andvertically affected markets.
To relieve the commission's concerns, Hexion offered to divest allfacilities belonging to its own epoxy resin business at Duisburg(Germany), its facility at Stuttgart (Germany), its facility atArgo (United States), its High Performance Resin Unit at Norco(United States), as well as R&D assets in Duisburg, Stuttgart andHouston (United States), including tangible and intangible assets,such as IPRs, licenses, permits, contracts, brands and personnel.
After market testing the proposed remedies, the commission saidthey were suitable and viable to address the competition concernsidentified in its market investigation and decided to authorise thetransaction.
nina.chestney@thomsonreuters.com
nc/slj
COPYRIGHT
Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.
The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson FinancialNews Content, including by framing or similar means, is expresslyprohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson FinancialNews.
Neither the Subscriber nor Thomson Financial News warrants thecompleteness or accuracy of the Service or the suitability of theService as a trading aid and neither accepts any liability forlosses howsoever incurred. The content on this site, includingnews, quotes, data and other information, is provided by ThomsonFinancial News and its third party content providers for yourpersonal information only, and neither Thomson Financial News norits third party content providers shall be liable for any errors,inaccuracies or delays in content, or for any actions taken inreliance thereon.