Dow Sells Shares Of OPTIMAL Group To PETRONAS

The Dow Chemical Company and Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS) have reached an agreement for Dow’s Union Carbide Corporation subsidiary, to sell its entire shares of ownership in the OPTIMAL Group of Companies (OPTIMAL) to PETRONAS for $660 million.

Reportedly, Dow and PETRONAS have agreed to enter into a commercial supply agreement allowing the two companies to continue serving the current customer base with products manufactured by OPTIMAL. Dow will market OPTIMAL’s basic and performance chemicals products to Dow’s existing customer base in Asia Pacific.

Andrew Liveris, chairman and CEO of Dow, said: “OPTIMAL has been a great investment, thanks to the dedication and hard work of our joint venture employees and our partner PETRONAS. With this transaction, we hand over the management of these businesses to PETRONAS, while at the same time remaining committed to our customers in the region. This divestiture and commercial arrangement demonstrate Dow’s ability to increase its financial flexibility and to continue to de-leverage the balance sheet.

Mohd Hassan Marican, president and CEO of PETRONAS, said: “Our purchase of Dow’s equity in OPTIMAL would enable us to strengthen our presence in Olefins and reinforce the growth of the Malaysian petrochemical industry. We have had an excellent working relationship with Dow over the years in OPTIMAL, and we expect that will continue, with Dow now becoming one of OPTIMAL’s largest customers.”