PITTSBURGH & TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Calgon Carbon Corporation (NYSE:CCC) and Kuraray Co., Ltd. (TYO:3405) announced today that their respective Boards of Directors have unanimously approved, and the parties have entered into, a definitive merger agreement under which Kuraray will acquire Calgon Carbon for $21.50 per share in cash, which equates to an equity value of approximately $1.1 billion, and a transaction value in excess of $1.3 billion, including Calgon Carbon’s net indebtedness. The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals and approval by Calgon Carbon stockholders. The parties are targeting a closing by the end of December, 2017. The acquisition will be completed through a merger of a newly-created subsidiary of Kuraray with and into Calgon Carbon, with Calgon Carbon as the surviving corporation.
While this acquisition will enhance Kuraray’s growth strategy and global presence in activated carbon and filtration media, it intends to operate Calgon Carbon as a separate subsidiary of Kuraray. The companies will align the organization and operation for optimal customer support from Calgon Carbon’s world headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Kuraray and Calgon Carbon have complementary products and services, and the combined organization will continue to focus on the highest quality activated carbon and filtration media products, equipment and services for customers around the world. The combination will strengthen Kuraray’s focus on contributing to human health, and the sustainability of the environment through innovative and high quality products around the world.
Randy Dearth, Calgon Carbon’s Chairman, President and CEO, said of the acquisition, “Not only does this transaction deliver premium value to our stockholders, it also benefits our customers and employees by making Calgon Carbon part of a much larger, stronger global company with resources to fully support our global activated carbon, filtration media and service businesses now, and well into the future.”
Masaaki Ito, Kuraray’s Representative Director and President said, “For Kuraray, the integration of Calgon Carbon's excellent employees all around the world, their R&D and sales expertise, and their manufacturing operations will contribute to the expansion of our carbon materials business, which leads our key strategic areas such as ‘water and environment,’ and ‘energy.’ Together, Kuraray and Calgon Carbon will help advance human health and environmental sustainability by providing high performance carbon materials to the market.”
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is acting as the financial adviser to Calgon Carbon and Jones Day is serving as legal counsel. Goldman Sachs and Co. LLC is serving as exclusive financial advisor to Kuraray and Mayer Brown LLP is serving as legal counsel.
About Calgon Carbon
Calgon Carbon Corporation (NYSE:CCC) is a global leader in innovative solutions, high quality products and reliable services designed to protect human health and the environment from harmful contaminants in water and air. As a leading manufacturer of activated carbon, with broad capabilities in ultraviolet light disinfection, Calgon Carbon provides purification solutions for drinking water, wastewater, pollution abatement, and a variety of industrial and commercial manufacturing processes.
Calgon Carbon is the world’s largest producer of granular activated carbon and supplies more than 100 types of activated carbon products – in granular, powdered, pelletized and cloth form – for more than 700 distinct applications. With the acquisition of complementary wood-based activated carbon and filtration media capabilities located in Europe, Calgon Carbon becomes an even more global and diverse industry leader in activated carbon, reactivation, and filtration media in the form of diatomaceous earth and perlites.
Headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Calgon Carbon employs approximately 1,400 people and operates 20 manufacturing, reactivation, innovation and equipment fabrication facilities in the U.S., Asia, and in Europe, where Calgon Carbon is known as Chemviron. For more information about Calgon Carbon’s leading activated carbon, filtration media, and ultraviolet technology solutions, visit www.calgoncarbon.com.
About Kuraray
Kuraray was established in 1926. In 1950, the company achieved a corporate milestone as the first in the world to bring polyvinyl alcohol synthetic fiber to market. In subsequent years, Kuraray used its proprietary technology in the area of polymer chemistry and synthetic chemistry to develop resins, chemicals, fibers and textiles.
As a pioneer of Vinyl Acetate related business, Kuraray has a global presence in the business area of PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) resin, PVB (polyvinyl butyral) resin and film, PVA film that is used for LCD and detergent unit packing, EVOH (ethylene vinyl alcohol) resin (trademarked as EVAL) used for food packaging and gasoline tanks, and PVA fiber (vinylon) that is used for a substitute of asbestos and a reinforcing material of cement. Kuraray has overseas subsidiaries in 28 countries and regions outside Japan, as a global specialty chemical company. For more information, visit the company’s website at www.kuraray.com.
