Talks for Braskem's US assets could hit resistance from prospective owners
Groups vying for control of Brazilian petrochemical producer Braskem are expected to resist a sale of its U.S. assets, three people close to the discussions told Reuters.
Brazilian chemical company Unipar is in talks to acquire Braskem's polypropylene plants in Texas, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia for around $1 billion, according to a report on Thursday by Brazilian newspaper O Globo and a source familiar with the talks.
Braskem and Unipar confirmed on Friday they were discussing the sale of unspecified Braskem assets.
Shares of Braskem were up about 3% and those of Unipar jumped almost 9% on the Sao Paulo stock exchange on Friday.
However, neither of the parties vying to assume a controlling stake in Braskem are interested in selling the U.S. assets, sources said on condition of anonymity.
Brazilian businessman Nelson Tanure, who entered a 90-day period of exclusive talks with engineering group Novonor, formerly known as Odebrecht, opposes the idea, one of the sources said.
Private equity management firm IG4 Capital, which hatched a rival plan to pool Novonor's bank debt and swap it for control of Braskem once Tanure's exclusive negotiations expire this month, would also likely oppose a sale of the U.S. plants, without a comprehensive plan for the future, another source said, noting that these holdings are important.
A U.S. asset sale would also run counter to Braskem's stated strategic plan, according to a third source.
Braskem and Unipar declined to provide further details on the assets. Tanure and IG4 declined to comment.
Braskem's CEO on Thursday denied any interest in selling the U.S. assets.