Bain closes acquisition of Dow's Styron unit

ERJ staff report (DS)

Boston, Massachusetts -- The Dow Chemical Company and private equity company Bain Capital Partners, said they have closed the sale of Dow's Styron Division to an affiliate of Bain Capital. Dow will retain a 7.5 percent equity position in Styron, which is now a privately held, global materials company. Also included in the transaction are several long-term supply, service and purchase agreements between Dow and Styron that will generate substantial additional value for both companies.

Styron's Latex and Synthetic Rubber portfolio includes Styrene-butadiene latex (SB latex) and Styrene-acrylate latex (SA latex) as well as Solution styrene-butadiene (SSBR), Lithium polybutadiene (Li-PBR), Emulsion styrene-butadiene (ESBR) and Nickel polybutadiene (Ni-PBR). Other businesses and products included in the transaction are: Styrenics - Polystyrene (PS), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), styrene acrylonitrile (SAN) and expandable polystyrene (EPS); Emulsion Polymers (paper and carpet latex); Polycarbonate (PC) and Compounds & Blends; Automotive Plastics; and some styrene monomer assets.

“Styron is a brand new global materials company that stands on seven decades of heritage - built upon a history of strengths in technology, application expertise, operations excellence, innovation and global reach,” said Christopher D. Pappas, President and Chief Executive Officer of Styron. “But while we're proud of our past, it's where we're going that excites us the most. We bring the same world-class team our customers have come to trust -- talented employees with deep technical knowledge and experience. That same team is now fully dedicated to helping our customers stay at the forefront of their industries, and enabling them to turn their ideas into marketplace reality.”

Dow said Styron is a leading materials company with global reach, bringing together plastics, rubber and latex businesses that share feedstocks, operations, customers and end users. Styron has approximately $3.7 billion in revenue (based on 2009 data), with manufacturing facilities at 20 locations in 13 countries around the world. Styron has approximately 2,000 employees based in 30 countries worldwide.

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Press release from Dow