Germany's Lanxess to buy Chemtura for about $2.12 billion in cash

[September 26, 2016]    (Reuters) - Lanxess AG <LXSG.DE> said on Sunday it would buy specialty chemical company Chemtura Corp <CHMT.N> for about $2.12 billion in cash to improve the German company's additives business.

A logo of Lanxess is seen next to dark clouds at Cologne Bonn airport March 27, 2015. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

Lanxess's offer of $33.50 for each Chemtura share, represents a premium of about 19 percent to the Philadelphia-based company's close on Friday.

The world's largest synthetic rubber maker will use existing funds and new debt to buy Chemtura in a deal with an enterprise value of about 2.4 billion euros ($2.69 billion), Lanxess said in a statement.

The boards of both companies have unanimously approved the deal, which is expected to close around mid-2017, Chemtura said in a separate statement.

Lanxess also said it will no longer pursue its earlier-announced share buyback of around 200 million euros.

Morgan Stanley advised Chemtura on the deal.

(Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra Maler and Sunil Nair)

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