Indian giant Reliance Industries is set to buy assets from stricken US petrochemicals group Lyondell-Basell in a deal that could be worth up to 6 billion dollars, a report said Monday.
The purchase, which would signal that the cross-border acquisition market is picking up again after the global financial crisis, is under discussion and might be announced this month, The Economic Times reported.
“The intent is certainly to make an announcement on the day of the AGM or very close to it but that depends on how the talks progress,” the paper quoted a person familiar with the transaction as saying.
The AGM, or annual general meeting, of Reliance is scheduled for November 17.
The paper said it had consulted bankers and analysts, one of whom said the transaction could be around 6 billion dollars and include US and European assets.
“Earlier reports had referred to a deal of around 3.35 billion dollars for the company's US assets,” the paper said, without giving further details.
The report said Lyondell-Basell filed for bankruptcy protection in the US in January, which gives it protection from its creditors and time to restructure its businesses.
Reliance Industries is India's largest private company by market capitalisation and sales, with assets in oil, gas and petrochemicals businesses.
Source: AFP