Amsterdam, the Netherlands, December 14, 2007 - The European Commission has today approved Akzo Nobel's merger clearance request with regard to its proposed acquisition of Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI). The transaction has also been cleared by the Canadian Competition Bureau and has already been cleared by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
In granting clearance, both the EU and Canadian authorities have accepted a commitment package from Akzo Nobel involving the divestment of a number of Decorative Coatings businesses, which together had 2006 revenues of around EUR 300 million. Upon completion of the deal, the enlarged Akzo Nobel group will have pro forma combined revenues of approximately EUR 15 billion.
The intended Decorative Coatings divestments are as follows. For the UK and Ireland, Akzo Nobel has committed to divesting the manufacturing and warehouse sites in Darwen, Hull, Warrington, Dublin and Belfast; its Crown Decorator Centre network; and the Crown®, Crown Trade®, Berger®, MacPherson®, Permoglaze® and Sandtex® brands. Furthermore, the arrangement for the UK market includes the company's export activities to Cyprus related to these brands. Akzo Nobel has also committed to granting a license to the buyer for the use of its Sadolin® brand in the UK and Ireland for a period of five years.
For the Belgian market, Akzo Nobel has committed to divesting its DeKeyn® and Linitop® brands, as well as granting a license to the buyer for the use of its Sadolin® brand in Belgium for five years.
In Canada, the company will sell a factory in Etobicoke, Ontario, along with its Para® and Crown Diamond® brands.
Said Akzo Nobel CEO Hans Wijers: "We will be making every effort to ensure that these excellent businesses are transferred to the most appropriate new owners who will build on the successes that these activities have already achieved."
Following receipt of the approvals, the timetable for the proposed acquisition of ICI remains as previously announced. Accordingly, it is expected that the court hearing to sanction the ICI scheme of arrangement will take place on December 17, 2007 and that the court hearing to confirm the associated reduction of capital will take place on December 20, 2007. Akzo Nobel expects the acquisition to be completed on January 2, 2008.
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Akzo Nobel is a Fortune Global 500 company and is listed on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange. It is also the Chemicals industry leader on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes and is included on the FTSE4Good Index. Based in the Netherlands, we are a multicultural organization serving customers throughout the world with coatings and chemicals products. We employ around 43,000 people and conduct our activities in these two segments, with operating subsidiaries in more than 80 countries. Consolidated revenues for 2006 totaled EUR 10 billion. The financial results for the fourth quarter and full year will be published on March 6, 2008 (preliminary date).
