Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corp and private equity firm Carlyle Group have emerged as frontrunners to buy assets that gases groups Linde and Praxair need to divest to seal their planned merger, people close to the matter said.
The bidders are expected to enter into exclusive negotiations shortly on the sale of two packages of assets worth about $8 billion in total, the people added.
Taiyo is in the frame to bag the European package, while Carlyle would take the U.S. assets, they said.
The two deals could clear the way to secure the fate of an all-share merger of equals that Munich-based Linde and Danbury, Connecticut-based Praxair struck to create a global leader in gas distribution, with revenues of almost $29 billion and 88,000 staff.
Linde and Carlyle declined to comment, while Praxair and Taiyo were not immediately available for comment.
By Harry Brumpton, Arno Schuetze, Greg Roumeliotis
Source: Reuters
The US State of New York is introducing two new bills to combat over-packaging, poor recycling rates and litter issues, including an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program requiring companies such as McDonald’s and Amazon to pay for the cost of packaging disposal and recycling.
The new organization’s mission is to redesign the critical steps of the plastics sorting and recycling system for post-consumer lightweight packaging (LWP) to speed up circularity, born from a need to meet the rising market demand for high-quality recyclates for use in high-end plastic applications.
Starbucks and Hubbub have launched a £1 million (US$1.22 million) “Bring It Back Fund” to increase the uptake of reusable packaging in the F&B industry. The funding will go toward innovative ideas that make it easier for customers to use alternatives to single-use packaging by supporting pilot projects that help shift consumption habits.
