Westlake Drops Bid For Georgia Gulf

Westlake Chemical has dropped its $1.2 billion bid to acquire rival poly­vinyl chloride maker Georgia Gulf. Westlake withdrew its offer on May 4 after confidential discussions with Georgia Gulf’s management. The bid was made public in January, when Westlake made an unsolicited $30.00-per-share offer for the company. The bid represented a 23% premium over Georgia Gulf’s share price on Jan. 12, the eve of Westlake’s offer announcement. Georgia Gulf’s board promptly rejected the offer, calling it “an opportunistic attempt to acquire the company’s uniquely positioned assets as we recover from an unprecedented downturn.” The board also rejected a sweetened, $35.00-per-share bid for the company on Feb. 1, again on the grounds that it undervalued the company. Westlake now plans to sell the 4.8% stake in Georgia Gulf that it had acquired before it unveiled its unsolicited bid.