Paint giant merger fails
Business Reporter ONE of the North East’s biggest employers has ended talks with a US firm, months after fighting off a takeover bid by another US rival.
Dulux owner AkzoNobel, which employs more than 1,000 people at Ashington and Gateshead, announced last month it had launched talks over a potential merger with with Axalta, having rejected a multibillion-pound bid from PPG Industries.
Discussions between the two have now been abandoned after failing to reach an agreement.
It has been reported talks between the two firms came to an end when Nippon Paint offered to snap up Axalta.
It is believed the Japanese giant has made a cash bid for Axalta, valuing it much higher than it had contemplated – although Axalta has not confirmed this approach.
AkzoNobel, which has opened its new manufacturing facility in Ashington and announced plans to create a £10m research facility in Gateshead, will look to focus upon its own growth strategy.
The separation of the AkzoNobel Specialty Chemicals business and return of the vast majority of the net proceeds to shareholders remain on track, the firm said.
Experts had said entering the talks in the first place with Axalta could have been a strategic move by AkzoNobel, which is hoping to stay independent.