German industrial gases group Linde and U.S. peer Praxair have reached a deal in principle on details of their proposed $70 billion merger, Linde said on Wednesday.
The all-share merger of equals, intended to create a market leader that will overtake France’s Air Liquide, had fallen behind schedule due to complex talks over a Business Combination Agreement formalizing the deal.
The agreement still needs the approval of Praxair’s board of directors as well as Linde’s management and executive boards, Linde said, adding that signing the agreement was no guarantee the deal would be completed.
Labor representatives at Linde fiercely oppose the planned merger, mainly because moving the headquarters outside Germany will dilute their influence, which currently gives them an effective veto over strategic decisions.
The companies have said that the new combined Linde would be run out of Danbury, Connecticut by Praxair’s CEO Steve Angel, with Linde supervisory board Chairman Wolfgang Reitzle as chairman. The headquarters of the new holding company will probably be in Ireland.
Investors and workers are equally represented on Linde’s supervisory board, which must approve the deal.
Linde’s Reitzle told Reuters this month that he would be reluctant but prepared to use his casting vote as chairman in the event of a stalemate with labor representatives.
German weekly WirtschaftsWoche earlier on Wednesday cited sources as saying that Linde’s supervisory board would vote on the merger agreement next week.
Shares in Linde were up 4 percent at 172.55 euros by 1449 GMT (10:49 a.m. ET), while Praxair was 2.5 percent higher at $133.18.
By Maria Sheahan
Source: Reuters
CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CF) today announced that it has closed its acquisition of Incitec Pivot Limited’s (“IPL”) ammonia production complex located in Waggaman, Louisiana. Under the terms of the agreement, CF Industries purchased the Waggaman ammonia plant and related assets for $1.675 billion, subject to adjustments.
The Virgin Atlantic flight was powered entirely by SAF, that was a drop-in replacement for conventional jet fuel, but made solely from sustainable feedstocks. This was enabled through the inclusion of a new bio-based aromatic jet fuel blending component.
Cepsa SA (Madrid) has agreed a deal with C2X, an independent firm owned by AP Moller Holding with AP Moller-Maersk as minority owner, to develop a 300,000 metric tons per year renewable methanol plant at Huelva, Spain.