Dow Chemical, which wants to hive off its various stakes in Kuwait’s chemical and petrochemical sectors, will offer its shares to Kuwaiti citizens as an initial public offering (IPO).
Kuwait's state news agency KUNA quoted Public Industries Co (PIC) CEO - Asaad al-Saad, as saying at a news conference that, Dow’s divested shares would be offered to Kuwaiti citizens as an IPO.
PIC is a Kuwaiti Government owned company and is a joint venture partner in MEGlobal with Dow Chemical.
Dow last week said it will reconfigure and reduce its equity base in the MEGlobal and Greater Equate joint ventures, including Kuwait Olefins Company (TKOC) and Kuwait Styrene Company (TKSC).
Saad however, did not clarify how the stake sale would work or when they would occur.
“Consultants will be hired to assess the size of Dow Chemical's assets in Kuwait, and the US firm will remain a strategic partner of PIC,” he said.
Last year, Dow received $2.2 billion in damages from PIC after an international arbitrator ruled against the Kuwaiti firm for pulling out of a planned plastics joint venture in 2008.
However, Saad denied the dispute had anything to do with Dow Chemical's divestment decision, KUNA reported. (AR)
