Cooper Tire scraps $2.5-billion merger deal with Apollo

US-based Cooper Tire & Rubber Co on Monday terminated its troubled $2.5-billion merger agreement with Apollo Tyres.

It is time to move our business forward, Cooper Chairman Chief Executive Officer and President Roy Armes said in a statement.

The announcement follows a Delaware Supreme Court ruling earlier this month in favour of the Indian firm in their spat over their proposed merger agreement, which was announced in June this year.

While the strategic rationale for a business combination with Apollo   is compelling, it is clear that the merger agreement both companies signed on June 12 will not be consummated by Apollo and we have been notified that financing for the transaction is no longer available.

The right thing for Cooper now is to focus on continuing to build our business, he added. Comments from Apollo Tyres could not be obtained immediately.

Stating that the company was keeping its legal options open, he said: While Cooper believes Apollo has breached the merger agreement, and we will continue to pursue the legal steps necessary to protect the interests of our company and our stockholders, our focus will be squarely on our business and moving it forward.

On November 12, pushing for an early completion of their merger deal, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co had filed with the Delaware Supreme Court an appeal against the partial ruling on November 8, 2013 by Delaware Chancery Court. Under the partial ruling of the lower court, Cooper and Apollo were required to continue to perform their obligations under the merger agreement till December 31, 2013, the date through which the agreement was to remain in effect.

In October, Cooper filed a complaint in Delaware Court of Chancery to push for completion of their merger and stated that the Indian firm was seeking to delay an agreement with USW, which represents Cooper employees at facilities in Findlay, Ohio, and Texarkana, Arkansas.

Apollo had denied this but sought price reduction in the $2.5-billion deal citing problems related to the US firm's operations in China and concessions to the workers union but was rejected by Cooper.

In June, Apollo had announced it will acquire Cooper Tire & Rubber Co in an all-cash transaction valued at around $2.5 billion (nearly Rs 14,500 crore) and the merged entity was billed to become the seventh largest tyre maker in the world.

Commenting on the future roadmap, Armes said: We look forward to continuing to execute on our strategy in 2014, and we have a very strong base from which to do this brands that are respected for quality, a loyal customer base, a flexible global network of manufacturing facilities, a skilled workforce, and top technical capabilities.