Wilmington, Delaware – DuPont has pulled out of its planned all-cash $5.2bn acquisition of Arizona-based Rogers, a day shy of a year after the deal was announced. It will pay Rogers a termination fee of $162.5m. Rogers shares dropped by 43% on the news, while DuPont’s rose by 6%.
DuPont cited an inability to obtain timely clearance from all the required regulators. The problem was in China, with the companies reporting at the end of September that all other approvals had been received by then.
The deal was part of DuPont’s strategy to increase its business in fast-growing sectors such as electric vehicles. Rogers’ portfolio of engineering materials includes industrial and medical polyurethanes sold under the Poron brand name, R/bak open cell urethane cushion mounting materials, and XRD impact protection materials.
DuPont announced the divestment of much of its mobility and materials business to Celanese in February. Cash from this $11bn deal was destined to pay for Rogers. This divestment closed on the same day the Rogers purchase was abandoned.
Rogers said it is currently evaluating all options to determine the best path forward. ‘Rogers remains an exceptional company, and the team continues to execute on our successful growth strategy,’ it said. ‘Our strong competitive position innovating across fast-growing markets, including EV/HEV, is underscored by continuing design wins, broad customer enthusiasm and a robust pipeline of opportunities.’
