Bayer Shares Climb After Arbitration Tribunal Dismisses BASF Claims

   By Ed Frankl 
 

Shares in Bayer AG rose Friday after a tribunal said the company doesn't have to pay BASF SE damages related to the sale of certain seed businesses as part of efforts to gain antitrust clearance for its 2018 acquisition of Monsanto.

Shares at 1012 GMT were up 48% at EUR53.65.

BASF filed arbitration proceedings in September 2019 at the International Court of Arbitration in Paris based on allegations that Bayer didn't adequately disclose continuing costs of the seed businesses.

For Bayer, 1.7 billion euros ($1.75 billion) plus interest was at stake, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

Bayer divested parts of its crop science business to BASF--closing in 2018--for a total of EUR7.4 billion to satisfy antitrust authorities as part of its $63 billion takeover of Monsanto.

The sale included most of Bayer's seed business such as canola, cotton and soybeans, it said.

The Leverkusen-based company welcomed news of the dismissal by the arbitration tribunal.

"Bayer provided adequate information on the cost structure of the seeds businesses acquired by BASF in August 2018 and didn't breach any contractual obligations," Bayer said in a statement.

"We are disappointed that the arbitral tribunal did not follow our arguments," a spokesperson for BASF said.

Write to Ed Frankl at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 12, 2022 06:41 ET (10:41 GMT)

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