Sponsored by
AkzoNobel’s Success Over Takeover Bid Could
Slow Down Consolidation Trends
AkzoNobel’s
success in fighting
off a takeover
bid by PPG
Industries could
signal a change
in attitudes to
acquisitions
among politicians
and the public
in Europe, which
may slow down
consolidation
in the coatings
sector.
by Sean Milmo
European Correspondent
milmocw@rodmanmedia.com
AkzoNobel’s success in fighting off a takeover bid by PPG Industries could signal a change in attitudes to acquisitions among politicians and the public in
Europe, which may slow down consolidation
in the coatings and other sectors in the region.
The Netherlands-based AkzoNobel, a leading
global player which is Europe’s largest coatings
company, mounted a strong defense of its independence immediately after PPG made its first
$24 billion offer in early March. The U.S. company which itself has a large European operation in
architectural, automotive and industrial coatings,
raised its bid in April to $29 billion equivalent to
a 50 percent premium on AkzoNobel share price
prior to the acquisition battle.
However AkzoNobel refused even to enter into serious negotiations with PPG before
the U.S. company ran out of time. On June
1 it announced it was withdrawing from the
contest rather than make a hostile bid which
would have been required under Dutch stock
market rules.
A key factor in favor of AkzoNobel from the
start was the support of the Dutch government,
politicians and public opinion. PPG’s initial offer unfortunately coincided with the beginning
of a Dutch general election campaign in which
the matter of putting ‘Netherlands first’ was
a prominent issue.
PPG claimed that a merger would enable
the two companies to combine complementary
products, technologies and geographies to provide a broader line of products and technologies
cost-effectively to a more diverse customer base.
It calculated annual cost-saving synergies of
at least $750 million as a result of pooling of
