DuPont and The Dow Chemical Company agree merger

‘This transaction is a game-changer for our industry and reflects the culmination of a vision we have had for more than a decade to bring together these two powerful innovation and material science leaders,’ said Andrew N. Liveris, Dow’s chairman and CEO.

Over the next two years, DowDuPont will be separated into three independent, publicly traded companies: Agriculture, Material Science and an ‘innovation-driven’ Specialty Products company.

Edward D. Breen, chairman and CEO of DuPont, added: ‘For DuPont, this is a definitive leap forward on our path to higher growth and higher value. Longer term, the three-way split we intend to pursue is expected to unlock even greater value for shareholders and customers and more opportunity for employees as each business will be a leader in attractive segments where global challenges are driving demand for these businesses’ distinctive offerings.'

Upon closing of the transaction, the combined company will have a market capitalization of approximately 130 billion USD. The transaction is expected to deliver approximately three billion USD in cost synergies. The new Material Science company will be based around DuPont’s Performance Materials segment and Dow’s Performance Plastics, Performance Materials and Chemicals, Infrastructure Solutions, and Consumer Solutions (excluding the Dow Electronic Materials business) operating segments. End-use segments include packaging, transportation, and infrastructure solutions. The Specialty Products company will include DuPont’s Nutrition & Health, Industrial Biosciences, Safety & Protection and Electronics & Communications, as well as the Dow Electronic Materials business.