DuPont Merger Caps Turbulent Reign For Dow's Liveris
12 Dezember 2015 - 9:02AM
Dow Jones News
(FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 12/12/15)
By Alison Sider and Jacob Bunge
Andrew Liveris, chief executive of Dow Chemical Co., will take
the role of executive chairman in a combination of Dow and DuPont
Co., announced Friday, assuming he can pull off a marriage of the
two rivals with regulators.
The move is the latest for an executive known for having big
ambitions and a personality to match. It could prove the pinnacle
of a career marked by wide swings in his company's fortunes and
personal dramas for the 61-year-old Mr. Liveris.
A deal with DuPont has been in Mr. Liveris's sights for years,
and he moved quickly when DuPont appointed a new chief executive
earlier this year.
"Persistence is my middle name," he said in an interview on
Friday with The Wall Street Journal, crediting his upbringing in
Australia's outback.
A native of the northern Australian city of Darwin, Mr. Liveris
has said he reinvented himself three or four times in his 11 years
at the helm of the chemical giant. Trained as a chemical engineer,
Mr. Liveris joined Dow nearly 40 years ago in Australia and worked
throughout Asia, including Thailand and Hong Kong, and then in the
U.S.
Analysts credit Mr. Liveris with forging international
partnerships that have expanded Dow's horizons, including a joint
venture with the state-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co., or Saudi
Aramco. Together, they built a giant petrochemical complex on the
Persian Gulf that started production earlier this week.
"He's probably the most global executive I've encountered," said
Wells Fargo analyst Frank Mitsch.
He also undertook a risky overhaul of the sprawling company,
divesting billions of dollars worth of businesses -- some of which
Dow had been in for more than a century -- to focus on
higher-margin products.
"He's a very strategic minded person -- very determined, always
willing to make bold steps for the portfolio," said Raj Gupta, the
former CEO of Rohm & Haas, which Dow bought in 2009.
Dow was rocked by the financial crisis, which took a bite out of
world-wide demand for its products. The company's $16 billion deal
to buy rival Rohm & Haas nearly collapsed during the downturn
when Kuwait pulled out of a joint venture that would have helped
pay for the purchase. Dow had to cut its dividend for the first
time and took $3 billion worth of rescue financing from billionaire
Warren Buffett.
More recently, Dow came under fire from activist investor Daniel
Loeb of Third Point LLC, who last year pushed Mr. Liveris to break
the company apart. Dow agreed to add two of the hedge fund's
preferred directors to its board.
Mr. Liveris also has encountered legal challenges.
In a clash that started in 2007, Mr. Liveris ultimately
prevailed against two former executives who admitted they had
engaged in talks aimed at selling the company behind his back.
In a separate case, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
has sought documents related to the Dow chief's use of company
funds, according to a person familiar with the matter. A spokesman
for the SEC declined to comment. The company didn't respond to
requests for comment, but in the past has denied any wrongdoing by
Mr. Liveris.
Scrutiny of Mr. Liveris's use of Dow money dates back to 2011,
when the company disclosed in a filing to the SEC that the CEO
repaid more than $719,000 after what the company described as a
routine audit committee investigation.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 12, 2015 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)
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