Solutia sticks to $500 million sale
3 Dec 2002
Solutia today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its resins, additives and adhesives businesses to Brussels based pharmaceutical and specialty chemical company UCB for $500 million cash.
According to Solutia, the agreement includes 10 production sites that make liquid and powder coatings, technical resins, additives products and pressure-sensitive adhesives. The resins, additives and adhesives businesses together employ approximately 1,700 individuals in 22 countries and have sales of over $400 million.
Solutia will sell manufacturing facilities in Wiesbaden, Frankfurt-Fechenheim and Hamburg, Germany; Werndorf, Austria; Romano d'Ezzelino, Italy; Dijon, France; Soborg, Denmark; La Llagosta, Spain; Rayong, Thailand and Suzano, Brazil, as well as research and development facilities in Graz, Austria, and Springfield, Massachusetts.
Solutia will continue to manufacture Resimene amino cross-linking resins for UCB at the LaSalle, Canada, facility, and Indian Orchard plant in Springfield and Gelva adhesives in Massachusetts. All other manufacturing assets at the Indian Orchard facility will remain part of Solutia. The sale does not include Solutia's industrial products businesses or its Butvar specials and dispersions and Santotac product lines.
The transaction is anticipated to be slightly cash accretive and 7 to 9 cents dilutive to earnings per share in 2003. Upon closing, an accounting gain is expected. The company expects approximately $40 million in cash interest savings in 2003.
The sale is expected to close in early 2003, subject to completion of normal regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
