Bookmark 05-04-2009

Quadrant: Public Tender Offer from Aquamit

Aquamit B.V has announced to launch a public tender offer for all outstanding shares to the shareholders of Quadrant AG, Zurich, Switzerland. Aquamit B.V., Amsterdam, Netherlands, is with 50% each owned by Mitsubishi Plastics, Inc., a Japanese corporation, and by a Swiss group of Quadrant’s founders and directors consisting of Adrian Niggli, Arno Schenk, René-Pierre Müller and Walter Grüebler. The offer price is set at CHF 86 per share in cash. The main condition of the offer is for Aquamit B.V. to own at least 66 2/3% of all issued shares on consummation of the offer. Aquamit B.V. is expected to already hold 32.7% of the share capital in the form of shares and 4.1% in the form of options, this after the clearance by the competent competition authorities of share purchases agreed before the launch of the tender offer. Mitsubishi Plastics is a part of Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Group which has about 39,300 employees und generated revenues of about CHF 34 billion in the fiscal year 2007/2008. Since no objections from the competent antitrust authorities are expected, the takeover offer is likely to be consummated this summer.

Quadrant and Mitsubishi Plastics as well as their respective predecessors have established business ties since 1966 in the form of Nippon Polypenco Ltd. (NPL), a joint venture company in Japan. As part of a new strategic alliance between Quadrant, Mitsubishi Plastics and Aquamit B.V., the parties have agreed that Quadrant increases its ownership in NPL to 55% from 45%.