BUSINESS
THIRD TIME'S THE CHARM FOR CELANESE CEO Weidman expects Celanese will be a winner in its third go as a publicly owned firm MARC S. REISCH, C&EN NORTHEAST NEWS BUREAU
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UST NINE MONTHS AFTER BUYING
Celanese and taking it private, the investment firm Blackstone Capital Partners turned around and sold 40% of the company back to the public in a stock offering earlier this year. It was a good deal for Blackstone, but some observers questioned whether it was good for Celanese shareholders. Celanese President and ChiefExecutive Officer David N. Weidman maintains that Celanese will prove a good deal for all involved. TheJanuary stock sale marked the third public outing for Celanese, a maker of acetyl chemicals and performance polymers. Celanese had been a longtime public U.S. company when Hoechst bought it in 1987, and it became a public German company when Hoechst spun it off in 1999. It's now again a U.S. public company W h e n Blackstone acquired most of Celanese in April 2004, the transaction was valued at $3.8 billion, although Blackstone put up only $641 million of its own funds. The investment firm got back $500 million last September when investors bought Celanese bonds. And Blackstone pocketed another $804 million earlier this year not long after Celanese raised $1.1 billion in the US. stock offering. In a little less than a year, Blackstone more than doubled its original investment in Celanese. What's more, it still owns 60% of the firm, which is now valued at $1.4 billion and could be more Weidman valuable if Celanese shares rise above their May 10 close at $15.15 per share. Some market watchers anticipated Blackstone's quick turnaround. During a December 2003 conference call with analysts following Blackstone's purchase announcement, one investment banker was critical. "I'm going to voice my displeasure about the price. It's ridiculous," he said.
