ICI to sell Uniqema to Croda for

Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) has agreed to sell its oleochemicals and surfactants business, Uniqema, to Croda International for £410m in cash.

Under the UK Listing Rules, the deal constitutes a "Reverse Takeover" by virtue of its size and requires the approval of Croda shareholders, which will be sought at an Extraordinary General Meeting to be held in August. In the case of the Uniqema business within ICI India Limited, the transaction is subject to its shareholders" approval. The Uniqema business within ICI Pakistan Limited will not be part of the transaction.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, Uniqemas is a leading manufacturer of surfactants, oleochemicals and related derivatives. Its markets include healthcare, polymers, lubricants, personal care, process intermediates, crop protection, oilfield, textiles, polymer additives and cleaning. It has manufacturing facilities in 11 countries and 2,500 employees, who will transfer to Croda.

For the year ended 31 December 2005 the business being sold had sales of £626m and EBITDA of £49n. At 31 December 2005 it had gross assets of £461m.

ICI decided in February to sell off Uniqema. ICI chief executive John McAdam stated at the time that there was no compelling need to divest Uniqema, but if there was scope to realise value from a sale, ICI would have several attractive opportunities to invest the proceeds in other parts of ICI.

The deal will strengthen Croda's position as a leading global oleochemical specialties manufacturer and brings complementary products and technologies, such as alkoxylates and sunscreens. It also strengthens Croda's presence in growth markets, such as India.