Degussa sheds SKW Piesteritz
as part of the company's aim to focus on specialty chemicals. A
Memorandum of Understanding has been signed with Swiss wheat and
fertiliser trading company Ameropa Holding and Czech Republic
agrochemical business Agrofert Holding.
German chemical company Degussa is to sell its SKW Piesteritz-Group as part of the company's aim to focus on specialty chemicals. A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed with Swiss wheat and fertiliser trading company Ameropa Holding and Czech Republic agrochemical business Agrofert Holding.
The divestment process will take place step by step with a Swiss stock corporation, already set up on a 50:50 basis by the two parties, acquiring a 51 per cent share in SKW Piesteritz Holding and assuming management of the business.Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Prof. Utz-Hellmuth Felcht, Management Board Chairman of Degussa commented: "The sale will position SKW Piesteritz as a central element of a growing central European fertilizer corporation. This will open up interesting perspectives for the company."
The sale will be subject to approval by the national antitrust authorities, expected to be concluded by June 2002.
In 2001, SKW Piesteritz posted sales of around EUR 250 million with 600 employees. The Ameropa Holding company had sales of CHF 900 million and Agrofert business, with over 13,000 employees, recorded sales of EUR 1.5 billion in 2001.
