Bayer to pay 4.5bn for Aventis

2 October 2001



Bayer to pay 4.5bn for Aventis

By FWi staff

AG-CHEM giant Bayer is expected to announce it has agreed to buy Aventis CropScience, the agrochemicals subsidiary of Aventis, reports the Financial Times.

The move will lift the company from sixth into second place in the global crop protection industry, just behind Syngenta.

Under the expected agreement, Bayer will pay 7.25 billion (4.48bn), including 2bn of debt.

Bayer was expected to make the announcement in Leverkusen on Tuesday (2 October), detailing savings and financing.

Bayer has been in exclusive negotiations with Aventis since July, after it narrowly outbid its competitor BASF.

Bayer will not assume any risk arising from possible financial risks with StarLink, Aventis CropSciences genetically modified maize.

The paper comments that, for Bayer, the acquisition will further its plans to expand its profitable agrochemicals business, and more than double the companys agrochemicals sales to about 8bn.

• Bayer to buy Aventis CropScience?, FWi, 9 July, 2001
• Aventis to sell agrochem business, FWi, 16 November 2000
• Aventis to trim agchem list, FWi, 31 March 2000
• Bayer to buy agrochem assets?, FWi, 29 September 1999
• Merger means a new chemical giant on way, FARMERS WEEKLY, 11 December, 1998