Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. said it will pursue damages against Apollo Tyres Ltd. in a webcast following the announcement of its decision to terminate the merger agreement. The company answered questions previously submitted by investors, including whether litigation could have been avoided if the price per share had been reduced.
Cooper Chairman, CEO and President Roy Armes said he wanted to "set the record straight" on whether the litigation with Apollo and subsequent termination of the deal could have been avoided if a reduced price were negotiated between Cooper and Apollo.
"Cooper never received a proposal from Apollo to reduce the share price that included committed financing or that did not come with unreasonable risks for our company and our stockholders."
Armes said addressing the situation at Cooper Chengshan Tire (CCT) in China is the company's top priority in the near term. CCT opposes the merger agreement and filed a lawsuit against Cooper to dissolve their joint venture.
Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Brad Hughes responded to questions most commonly asked by investors in recent weeks. The webcast did not take live calls.
