Basell to acquire Lyondell Chemical Company for $48 per share
Basell,
the global leader in polyolefins, and Lyondell Chemical Company,
one of the world's largest chemical companies, announced today
that they have signed a definitive agreement pursuant to which Basell will
acquire Lyondell's outstanding common shares for $48 per common share in an all
cash transaction with a total enterprise value of approximately $19
billion, including the assumption of debt.
The purchase price per share represents a 45% premium to Lyondell's closing share price
on May 10, 2007, the day prior to the disclosure by Access
Industries, the industrial group that owns Basell, of its
potential interest in Lyondell, and a 20% premium to Lyondell's closing share price
on July 16, 2007. The transaction was unanimously approved by the
Boards of Directors of Basell and Lyondell.
The transaction will create one of the sector's largest companies. Lyondell's three business segments -- ethylene, co-products and derivatives; propylene oxide and related products; and refining -- will complement and significantly strengthen Basell's polyolefins business. Basell and Lyondell together would have had combined 2006 revenues of approximately $34 billion and 15,000 employees around the world.
Len
Blavatnik, Chairman and Founder of U.S.-based Access Industries,
said: "The combination of Basell and Lyondell creates one of
the top chemical companies in the world. This combination further
strengthens Access' long-term strategic position in
the global petrochemical industry."
Commenting on the
transaction, Volker Trautz, Chief Executive Officer of Basell,
said: "Lyondell's competitively positioned assets, access to
raw material and refining capacity are excellent complements to
Basell's diversified portfolio."
"We believe this
transaction offers significant value for Lyondell's
shareholders," said Dan F.
Smith,Chairman,President andChiefExecutiveOfficer of Lyondell.
"We are very pleasedthat Basell recognizes the value and fit
of our portfolio of chemical and refining assets. Basell and
Lyondell share a common vision for continued success, and the
combination of our companies will enhance our
opportunities."
The transaction is
subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory
approvals and the approval of Lyondell shareholders. This
transaction is expected to close within the next several months
and is not subject to financing.
About
Basell
Basell is the global leader in polyolefin technology, production
and marketing. It is the largest producer of polypropylene and
advanced polyolefin products; a leading supplier of polyethylene
and catalysts, and the industry leader in licensing polypropylene
and polyethylene processes, including providing technical
services for its proprietary technologies. Basell, together with
its joint ventures, has manufacturing facilities in 19 countries
and sells products in more than 120 countries. Basell is
privately owned by Access Industries. (www.basell.com)
About
Access Industries
Access Industries is a privately held, U.S.-based industrial
group with long-term holdings worldwide. Access was founded in
1986 by Chairman,
About Lyondell
Lyondell Chemical Company, headquartered in
Basell to buy Lyondell in $19 bil deal including Houston refinery
Dutch chemicals producer Basell has agreed to buy Houston-based Lyondell Chemical, including its 268,000 b/d refinery in the Texas city, for about $19 billion, the companies reported Tuesday.
The all-cash deal values Lyondell at $48/share, a 20% premium to the company's closing price Monday and a 45% premium to its close on May 10, the day prior to the disclosure by Basell parent Access Industries of its interest in Lyondell, the companies said. The deal also includes the assumption of Lyondell debt.
Lyondell in August 2006 bought partner Citgo's 41.25% stake for $2.1 billion. Lyondell also confirmed at the time that it had inked a new five-year, 230,000 b/d crude supply contract for the refinery with Citgo's parent, Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA.
Basell's deal with Lyondell followed a failed bid by Basell to acquire another US-based petchems producer, Huntsman Corp. On June 26, Basell said it had agreed to buy all of the outstanding common stock of Huntsman for $25.25/share in cash, or $9.6 billion, including the assumption of debt.
Basell's bid for Huntsman was trumped by US-based Hexion in a $28/share, or $10.5 billion, deal.
Lyondell
合併時の各社の能力は以下の通り。（千トン/年）
| Lyondell | Equistar | Millenium | |||
| PO | 2.050 | Ethylene | 5,270 | TiO2 Chloride Sulfate |
515 155 |
| SM | 2,270 | Propylene | 2,270 | VAM | 385 |
| MTBE | * | Butadiene | 545 | Acetic Acid | 545 |
| PG & PGE | 570 | EG | 455 | ||
| TDI | 260 | EO | 500 | ||
| Butanediol | 180 | HDPE | 1,450 | ||
| LDPE | 640 | ||||
| LLDPE | 500 | ||||
2007/3/5 Lyondell、酸化チタン事業をサウジ社に売却
2006/8 Lyondell
Acquires Partner's Interest in Houston Refinery
Lyondell Acquires Partner's Interest in Houston Refinery
Lyondell Chemical Company today announced that it has acquired CITGO's 41.25 percent ownership interest in Lyondell-Citgo Refining LP (LCR) in a transaction valued at approximately $2.1 billion, including CITGO's portion of the refinery's debt. Concurrently, Lyondell has negotiated a new five-year, 230,000-barrel-per-day crude oil contract with a subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. for the refinery. The new contract is based on market prices, which in recent years have been lower than those under the previous crude supply agreement.
1993
LYONDELL-CITGO Refining (LCR) is formed as the Houston Refinery becomes a joint venture with CITGO Petroleum Corporation
（ライオンデル５８．７５％出資）
The transaction, which will be immediately accretive, was financed using the proceeds of a seven-year Lyondell term loan.
Had Lyondell owned 100 percent of the refinery for the first six months of 2006, and had the new crude oil contract been in place, the company's unaudited pro forma financial statements indicate that pro forma net income would have increased from $450 million to $640 million, or $1.74 to $2.47 per share on a fully diluted basis. Corresponding data for full year 2005 indicate that pro forma net income would have increased from $531 million to $772 million, or $2.04 to $2.97 per share. Lyondell will file the unaudited pro forma financial statements with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today.
"This acquisition, coupled with a new market-based crude oil contract, unlocks the true value of this unique asset and contributes significantly to shareholder value," said Dan F. Smith, president and CEO of Lyondell. "We now will benefit fully from today's strong refining market conditions that we believe will continue into the foreseeable future."
The acquisition gives Lyondell sole ownership of the 268,000-barrel-per-day Houston refinery, which is strategically located on the U.S. Gulf Coast with access to interstate pipelines and the Port of Houston. The facility refines very heavy high-sulfur crude oil into clean fuels including reformulated gasoline and low-sulfur diesel, as well as other high- value products such as jet fuel and aromatics. It was one of the original Lyondell assets at the company's formation and, in 1993, became part of a joint venture between Lyondell and CITGO Petroleum Corporation.
"The refinery generates significant cash," said Smith. "In combination with the cash generated by our global chemical businesses, this will enable significant near-term debt reduction." Prior to this transaction, Lyondell had paid down more than $2.1 billion of debt since September 2004.
With the completion of the transaction, the refining operation will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Lyondell, joining Equistar Chemicals, LP and Millennium Chemicals Inc.; however, each will remain a separate legal entity.
Citgoが米Lyondell-Citgo製油所の権益を売却
8月16日、PDVSAの米国子会社Citgoは、米石化大手のLyondellと共同経営する米テキサス州ヒューストンのLyondell-Citgo製油所の権益の全て（41.25%）を、Lyondellに21億ドルで売却した。
CitgoとLyondellは、PDVSAからの原油供給等を巡り、関係の悪化が伝えられており、両社は本年4月Lyondell-Citgo製油所の売却を発表していた。同製油所は、26.8万b/dを精製し、米国で超重質油を扱う製油所の中でも最大規模を誇る。
Lyondellの発表によると、PDVSAは今後も5年間は同製油所に対して、原油供給を継続することを約束した由。従って本売却によりベネズエラの米国向け原油輸出量等に短期的な影響はないと見られる。
Citgoは、米国でこの他にも5つの製油所を所有する他、合弁事業による3つの製油所に経営参加している。この中で、ベネズエラ産原油を扱っていない製油所等もあり、同社が今後も米国の製油所売却を更に進める可能性も指摘される。
Basell and Lyondell Complete Merger Creating LyondellBasell Industries
Basell AF and Lyondell
Chemical Company today completed their merger, creating LyondellBasell
Industries,
the world's third-largest independent chemical company.
LyondellBasell businesses include polymers, chemicals, fuels and
technology with combined pro forma revenues of nearly US$43
billion for the 12 months ending Sept. 30, 2007. The company has
60 manufacturing sites in 19 countries on five continents and
nearly 15,000 employees worldwide.
"With the combination of Basell and Lyondell, we have
created a global leader in the petrochemical industry, with
exceptional capabilities in both chemicals and fuels," said
Volker Trautz, Chief Executive Officer of LyondellBasell.
"Each of our businesses has a long and successful heritage.
As we go forward, the values, dedication and ingenuity that made
our predecessors strong and successful will remain at the core of
our culture."
Basell, which is owned by Access Industries, acquired Lyondell's
outstanding common shares for $48 per common share in an all-cash
transaction with a total enterprise value of approximately $20
billion, including the assumption of debt.
LyondellBasell is the global leader in polyolefin technology,
production and marketing. It is the largest producer of
polypropylene and advanced polyolefin products, a leading
supplier of polyethylene and catalysts, and the industry leader
in licensing polypropylene and polyethylene processes. The
company also is an industry leader in propylene oxide and
derivatives and a leading producer of advanced fuel products. Its
North American refinery is among the most advanced heavy crude
oil refineries in the industry.
"LyondellBasell was formed with a focus on customers and
markets, a dedication to operational excellence and an emphasis
on innovation," Trautz said. "Our products benefit
people and communities all over the world. We are committed to
operating our businesses with the highest principles of
integrity, ethics and corporate responsibility, including the
highest standards of health, safety and environmental
performance. As an industry leader, we recognize the importance
of being a responsible corporate citizen in our
communities."
Len Blavatnik, founder and Chairman of Access Industries, said:
"The combination of the world class talent, technology,
refining and petrochemical capabilities from Lyondell and Basell
creates an unrivaled global petrochemical platform.
LyondellBasell is a dynamic addition to Access's industrial
portfolio."
Access Industries is a privately held, U.S.-based industrial
group that was founded in 1986 and has long-term holdings
worldwide in three key sectors: natural resources and chemicals;
telecommunications and media; and real estate.
LyondellBasell Industries is one of the world's largest polymers,
petrochemicals and fuels companies. We are the global leader in
polyolefins technology, production and marketing; a pioneer in
propylene oxide and derivatives; a significant producer of
advanced fuel products; and the owner of one of North America's
largest full-conversion refineries. Through research and
development, LyondellBasell develops innovative materials and
technologies that deliver exceptional customer value and products
that improve quality of life for people around the world.
Headquartered in The Netherlands, LyondellBasell
(http://www.lyondellbasell.com) is privately owned by Access
Industries.
Key Facts About LyondellBasell Industries
-- Vertically integrated facilities enable conversion of crude
hydrocarbons to materials for advanced applications
-- Global reach and scope to compete effectively worldwide
-- Four businesses: polymers, chemicals, fuels and technology
-- Technology business leads its industry in process technology
and catalysts
-- Combined annual revenues of $42.8 billion *
-- More than 60 manufacturing sites in 19 countries on five
continents
-- Sales in more than 120 countries
*Pro forma revenues for the 12
months ended Sept. 30, 2007
#1 Global -- Polyolefins and Polypropylene Compounding
#1 Global -- Propylene Oxide
#1 Global -- Polyolefins Licensing
#1 Global -- Polypropylene Catalysts
#1 Global -- Polypropylene
#3 Global -- Polyethylene
#2 Global -- Oxygenated Fuels
#2 Global -- Propylene Glycol & Propylene Glycol Ethers
#5 Global -- Light Olefins (ethylene and propylene)
-- North American refinery with 268,000 barrels per day heavy
crude capacity
LyondellBasell Starts up New PP Compounding Plant in Mexico
LyondellBasell Industries has announced the start-up of a new polypropylene (PP) compounding facility in Altamira, Mexico, with a nominal capacity of 30 KT per year. The company is the leading global producer of PP compounded products and supplies the automotive, appliance, electrical and electronics sectors.
"With this new facility," said Steve Dwyer, Vice President of LyondellBasell Automotive Americas, "we are in an ideal position to support the growth that our customers in the region are experiencing. This plant will use the latest technology to produce a wide range of high-performance, high-quality PP compounds."
The new plant is immediately adjacent to a PP manufacturing facility operated by Indelpro, a joint venture company of LyondellBasell Industries. The Altamira compounding plant will use PP feedstocks from Indelpro to supply compounds to the region's automotive and appliance manufacturing base.
2008/8/1 LyondellBasell
LyondellBasell Industries subsidiary sells its Sarnia, Ontario,
site to Shell
Basell Canada Inc. has
sold the assets and land located at its Sarnia, Ontario, site to
Shell's Canadian affiliates, parent company LyondellBasell
Industries announced today.
Included in the sale was the feed preparation unit, pipelines,
propylene storage and all of the land at the site. The site also
includes an isopropyl alcohol unit, which is currently owned by
Shell.
LyondellBasell has carried out decommissioning
activities at the 175 KT slurry polypropylene plant, which is also located on the
site. Last year, the company announced that it would cease
production at the plant because its operating costs were no
longer competitive.
In May, LyondellBasell announced that it will stop producing
polypropylene at its Morris, Ill., plant in the fourth quarter of
2008.
LyondellBasell currently operates three polypropylene lines in
Pasadena, Texas, and two polypropylene lines in Lake Charles, La.
All of these units use Spheripol process technology.
LyondellBasell's joint venture Indelpro, located in Mexico,
operates a Spheripol process line and is currently commissioning
its new 350 KT Spherizone polypropylene plant at Altamira.
LyondellBasell and
partners have signed a Project Development Agreement
LyondellBasell Industries, through its wholly owned subsidiary
Basell Service Company B.V.; the Government of Trinidad and
Tobago; The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago, Ltd.
(NGC); National Energy Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago, Ltd.
(NEC) and Lurgi GmbH announced today that they have signed a Project
Development Agreement.
It is intended to provide the relevant framework to govern the
relationship among the parties to evaluate jointly the
construction and operation of a fully integrated polypropylene
complex in Trinidad and Tobago.
The project will include the production of 490 KT of
polyolefins
based on three world-scale plants, including a methanol plant
and a methanol-to-propylene (MTPR) plant. The propylene produced by Lurgi´s MegaMethanol(R) and MTP(R) technologies will supply feedstock
to a polypropylene plant based on LyondellBasell's Spherizone
technology.
"Our main goal is to establish a sustainable local and
regional supply of polyolefins to the emerging local plastics
industry, to South American markets where demand is forecasted to
increase at an average annual growth rate of 5.2 percent, as well
as the existing large North American markets"
explained Volker
Trautz, Chief Executive Officer of LyondellBasell Industries.
Start up of operations is tentatively scheduled for late 2012.
The entire project will be undertaken in conjunction with Lurgi
GmbH, the industry leader in methanol and MTP(R)technology.
Trautz added: "We are happy to have the Government of
Trinidad and Tobago now joining the project. It will combine the
leading position of NGC and NEC in Trinidad and Tobago, with the
state-of-the-art technology of LyondellBasell and Lurgi, as well
as the marketing capability of LyondellBasell."
"The thrust of
the Government of Trinidad and Tobago is to develop the second
and third derivate industries from natural gas. The polyolefin
industry is one such industry identified for development as it is
viewed as a building block for expansion of the local plastics
manufacturing sector", explained Andrew Jupiter, President
(Ag) of NEC.
The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC) was founded
in 1975 and plays a key role in the development of the natural
gas-based energy sector through its core responsibility, that is,
the purchase, transmission, sale and distribution of natural gas
in Trinidad and Tobago.
National Energy Corporation (NEC) is a wholly owned subsidiary of
NGC with the mandate to promote new gas-based and associated
downstream energy industries and the development and management
of industrial estates, port and marine facilities for the
gas-based energy sector.
LyondellBasell Industries is one of the world's largest polymers,
petrochemicals and fuels companies. We are the global leader in
polyolefins technology, production and marketing; a pioneer in
propylene oxide and derivatives; and a significant producer of
fuels and refined products, including bio-fuels. Through research
and development, LyondellBasell develops innovative materials and
technologies that deliver exceptional customer value and products
that improve quality of life for people around the world.
Headquartered in The Netherlands, LyondellBasell
(www.lyondellbasell.com) is privately owned by Access Industries.
Lurgi is a leading technology company operating worldwide in the
fields of process engineering and plant contracting. The strength
of Lurgi lies in innovative technologies of the future focusing
on customized solutions for growth markets. The technological
leadership is based on proprietary technologies and exclusively
licensed technologies in the areas gas-to-petrochemical products
via synthesis gas or methanol and synthetic fuels,
petrochemicals, refining, polymers industry and renewable
resources/food. Lurgi is a company of the Air Liquide Group.
June 27, 2009 Houston Chronicle
Creditors' suit cites warnings inside Basell
Dutch chemical giant Basell's $12.7 billion buyout of Houston's Lyondell Chemical Co. went forward in 2007 despite repeated warnings from the highest levels of Basell and its affiliates that the deal was too risky, according to sealed court documents obtained by the Chronicle.
A year later, in a move that was "entirely foreseeable," the merged company filed for bankruptcy, buried in debt, starved for cash and overtaken by downturns in the chemical and refining industries Wall Street had seen coming, LyondellBasell creditors claim in a recently filed suit that includes the documents.
Internal skeptics of the merger feared the 100 percent debt-financed deal would saddle the new company with billions in debt and worried that financial projections about the combined company were intentionally inflated to help sell the deal to lenders, the sealed documents show.
Yet those concerns fell on deaf ears as the deal built momentum and as chief architects of the merger focused more on the millions they stood to gain if the deal was completed than on the long-term health of the new company, the documents claim.
The creditors' suit was attached to a motion filed last week in LyondellBasell's massive Chapter 11 case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York. The Chronicle obtained copies of the unredacted version.
The motion asks Bankruptcy Judge Robert Gerber for permission to sue Leonard Blavatnik, chairman of Access Industries, a private equity firm that owns Basell, and itsaffiliates, as well as Wall Street banks that signed off on the merger that created LyondellBasell. It has more than 4,000 employees and seven manufacturing plants in the Houston area.
"Unsecured creditors were harmed by the way this merger was put together," said John Elstad, a lawyer for the creditors with Brown Rutnick in Boston.
He otherwise declined to comment on allegations made in the redacted sections, which are still under court seal, or about broader claims in the lawsuit.
LyondellBasell lawyer Deryck Palmer also declined to comment, except to note that allegations in the suit are "only one side of the story."
New details
A July 21 hearing has been set to determine if the lawsuit will go forward and whether sealed portions of the 140-page document will be made public.
Those redacted portions, now hidden by solid black lines in public court documents, provide new details about events leading up to the July 2007 merger agreement between Basell and Lyondell, the closing of the transaction several months later and the subsequent bankruptcy filing a year after that.
The story begins in April 2006, when Access Industries, the private equity parent of Basell, made an unsolicited offer for Lyondell of $24-$27 per share, a premium of about 10 percent over the stock price at the time. But then-Lyondell CEO Dan Smith told Access it would have to offer at least 20 percent premium for the board to consider it a serious offer.
At Access' request, investment bank Merrill Lynch ran the numbers on a deal at $28 per share. It concluded the "timing was right" to acquire Lyondell ? code-named Hugo for the purpose of the study. The bullish view emboldened Access to act.
Concerns surface quickly
Almost immediately, however, the proposal met skepticism within Access.
CEO Lincoln Benet raised concerns to Blavatnik, the billionaire chairman, about the combined company's ability to fund operations and pay down merger-related debts if a downturn occurred in the refining and chemical businesses, a prospect then looking increasingly likely.
But Blavatnik pressed ahead. In August, Access made a formal offer of $26.50 to $28.50 per share, which Lyondell later rejected.
In early 2007, with Lyondell's stock over $30, Blavatnik tried again. He proposed buying Lyondell for $35 to $38 per share, which Merrill Lynch again supported, given the availability of credit for such deals at the time and the potential for big returns to Access in a few years.
An April 10, 2007, presentation by Merrill to Access asked, "Why Hugo?" The answer: "Because you can."
A Merrill Lynch spokesman declined to comment.
An Access spokesman declined to comment on specific charges in the lawsuit but in an e-mailed statement said the "economic environment and industry-specific dynamics in which the merger between Basell and Lyondell was completed was very different than today."
New round of doubts
Inside Access, doubts surfaced again about the wisdom of a Lyondell acquisition, particularly at $38 per share.
"We are putting a lot of debt on the combined entity just because the financial markets will let us," Ajay Patel, a vice president of mergers and acquisitions at Access, wrote in an e-mail at the time. "This may not be prudent in the long term."
Volker Trautz, then CEO of Basell, went so far as to ask Blavatnik to give executives a chance to pull out their stock holdings in Basell if he was going to gamble with Basell's equity and pursue Lyondell at such a high price.
But the price would go still higher. In June, Smith threw out $48 a share as a better asking price for Lyondell. And again Blavatnik agreed despite concerns by his team.
On July 17, Lyondell and Basell announced a merger agreement, with Merrill Lynch, Citibank and Goldman Sachs agreeing to fund the deal.
But things unraveled quickly. Rising crude prices boosted costs for the refining business, a weakening economy slowed demand for chemical products and the new company's earnings fell, giving heartburn to banks that had agreed to finance the transaction.
Projections off
The deal was given a final push by Lyondell's earnings projections for the rest of 2007 that later turned out to be much too high - projections the creditors' suit called a "feat of reverse engineering." The merger closed in December. When it did, Blavatnik received more than $300million. Dan Smith, meanwhile, took home more than $56million.
Just one year later, LyondellBasell placed all of its U.S. operations and a European holding company in bankruptcy protection. A reorganization plan is expected later this summer.
---
June 27, 2009 Houston Chronicle
Ugly reality was ignored in merger
No one bothered to listen to the notes of discord, blinded as the dealmakers were with visions of fast profits and huge fees.
Long before LyondellBasell’s $12.7??billion merger unraveled into bankruptcy earlier this year, people directly involved in the deal feared it would end badly, documents filed recently in the Chapter 11 case show.
In July 2007, Dutch chemical company Basell agreed to buy Houston-based Lyondell. Basell was a unit of privately held Access Industries, controlled by billionaire financier Leonard Blavatnik. Blavatnik hoped to use Basell to build a larger global chemical company through acquisitions.
Access, though, paid $48 a share for Lyondell, a 45 percent premium, even as a global slump was hitting the chemical industry. Within a year, the company was crumbling under the massive debt from the leveraged deal.
Access’ courtship of Lyondell actually began in April 2006. Several early advances were rebuffed by Lyondell’s board, which found the offering price too low, according to the filing.
Within Access, though, executives thought even some of those lower bids were a recipe for failure. Projections worked up by Merrill Lynch showing the deal could be viable at $38 a share were met with “a chorus of concern and skepticism,” according to a lawsuit the unsecured creditors committee wants to file against company officials and investment banks that helped put the merger together.
Unsecured creditors hope to recover billions in claims ; the exact amount they’re owed won’t be determined until after the June 30 deadline for filing claims, said John Elstad, an attorney with Brown Rudnick in Boston who represents the unsecured creditors committee.
The creditors’ suit was attached to a motion filed last week asking the judge overseelng LyondellBasell’s bankruptcy for permission to sue Blavatnik and his affiliates. Almost half of the 140-page document was redacted by the court, pending a hearing next month
An unredacted copy paints in excruciating detail a portrait of blind greed that drove into insolvency one of the world’s biggest chemical companies, which has seven plants and employs more than 4,000 in the Houston area.
Elstad declined to comment on the suit’s allegations, as did spokesmen for Access and Merrill.
E-mails from Access executives, cited in the suit, portray Blavatnik as obsessed with landing Lyondell at any cost, having lost bids for Huntsman and other chemical companies. Philip Kassin, Access’ head of mergers and financing, wrote Chief Financial Officer Alan Bigman in the spring of 2007 saying the idea of paying even $38 a share for Lyondell was causing him to lose sleep.
Bigman agreed and even e-mailed Blavatnik directly.
“I am uncomfortable with the valuation?it’s almost $5 billion more than we offered a year ago and over $2 billion more than we were discussing just a few weeks ago,” according to a copy of the message included in the lawsuit.
Another Access executive, Ajay Patel, described the deal this way: “We are putting a lot of debt on to the combined entity just because the financial markets will let us. This may not be prudent in the long term.”
Bigman responded that he couldn’t understand Merrill’s rosy projections for the merged company, saying if oil prices rose?which they later did?it would leave the company in financial distress.
Kassin later said he voted against the merger at an Access board meeting, calling the $48 offering price “ludicrous.”
The lawsuit portrays Merrill and other investment bankers as aggressively pushing the deal to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in advisory fees.
Blavatnik himself made a quick profit of more than $300 million on the deal
The creditors’ lawsuit paints a vivid picture of the mentality that spawned our global financial crisis. The deal makers were seduced by the siren song of fees and fast profit. The bankers underwrote a merger destined to fail because they planned to foist the dodgy debt on unsuspecting investors, washing their hands of responsibility. So everyone sang a happy tune and ignored ugly reality.
The creditors’ lawsuit paints a vivid picture of the mentality that spawned our global financial crisis. The deal makers were seduced by the siren song of fees and fast profit. The bankers underwrote a merger destined to fail because they planned to foist the dodgy debt on unsuspecting investors, washing their hands of responsibility. So everyone sang a happy tune and ignored ugly reality.
Meanwhile, LyondellBasell, its employees and its creditors were left to face the dirge of failure.