Slaughter and May is advising Platform Specialty Products Corporation - recommended offer for Alent

Slaughter and May is advising Platform Specialty Products Corporation (Platform) on its cash and share public takeover offer for Alent plc (Alent). The recommended offer was announced on 13 July 2015 and values Alent’s entire issued, and to be issued, share capital at approximately US$2.096 billion.

Under the offer, each Alent shareholder will be entitled to receive 503 pence in cash for each Alent share. Platform will also make available a partial share alternative, in respect of approximately 22% of Alent's share capital, enabling Alent shareholders to elect to receive Platform shares in lieu of all or part of the cash consideration, on the basis of 0.31523 Platform shares for each Alent share. Cevian, Alent's largest shareholder, has irrevocably undertaken to elect to receive Platform shares in respect of all of its holding of approximately 22% of Alent's share capital.

It is intended that the transaction will be implemented by way of a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement. The transaction is conditional on, among other things, certain regulatory clearances. Subject to the satisfaction or waiver of the conditions it is expected that the transaction will be completed in late 2015 or early 2016.

Platform is a global, diversified producer of high-technology specialty chemicals and provider of technical services. Alent is a leading global supplier of advanced surface treatment plating chemicals and electronics assembly materials.

A Paul Weiss team led by Jeffrey Samuels, Ross Fieldston and Jeffrey Marrell is working alongside Slaughter and May, advising Platform on US law aspects of the transaction.