BASF to launch chemicals unit sale in spring

BASF will launch the sale of its $3 billion-plus construction chemicals business in the spring, as part of the German chemicals group's drive to focus on more profitable operations, people close to the matter said. BASF, which flagged its intention to auction off or merge the unit in October, said on Tuesday it had hired Goldman Sachs to organise the transaction.

Goldman Sachs declined to comment. The world's largest maker of chemical additives for concrete is expected to fetch roughly 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion), the sources said.

First information packages are expected to be sent out to prospective bidders in March, the sources said, while one of them added that first-round offers were likely to be due before the summer break.

The company's new Chief Executive Martin Brudermueller in October unveiled plans to hive off the unit as BASF looks for ways to boost the group's share price.

The company said at the time that the business, whose products have been used to build major train tunnels in the Swiss Alps and in London, was not deeply integrated into BASF's produc- tion network and that it had fallen short of profitability targets. It has grown little since BASF purchased it from Degussa in 2006 for 2.7 billion euros including debt. The unit's need to cater to a large number of small to mid-size builders goes against BASF's focus on large industrial customers, industry analysts said.

Altria to tap European bond market to help fund Juul stake buy BASF bought seeds and crop chemical assets from Bayer and is seeking to wrap up the purchase of an engineering plastics business from Solvay to bolster margins at a time when its basic petrochemical businesses are slowing down.