NLMK Terminates Agreement to Purchase John Maneely Company
11/17/2008 - Novolipetsk Steel terminates its agreement to buy DBO Holdings, the corporate parent of John Maneely Co., from The Carlyle Group.
Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK), Russia, has terminated its agreement to buy DBO Holdings, the corporate parent of John Maneely Co. (JMC), from The Carlyle Group.
DBO Holdings and NLMK had entered into a merger agreement on August 12, 2008, that provided for the sale of DBO Holdings to NLMK for $3.53 billion. DBO Holdings subsequently filed a lawsuit (October 15th) against NLMK in New York federal court as a result of NLMK’s failure to close the transaction in a timely manner, in breach of the express terms of the merger agreement between the parties. That suit is pending.
DBO Holdings said that it intends to aggressively pursue all legal remedies at its disposal to enforce its rights under the merger agreement, and fully expects to prevail in its pending lawsuit against NLMK.
“We are disappointed that NLMK has chosen to breach its obligations under the merger agreement,” said Daniel A. Pryor, Carlyle Managing Director and Vice Chairman of JMC. “However, JMC is an exceptional company with superb employees and a proven management team. We see many opportunities to continue building and strengthening the business.
“It has been a privilege to work with the company over the past three years,” added Pryor, “and I look forward to continued involvement.”
“It has been a privilege to work with the company over the past three years,” added Pryor, “and I look forward to continued involvement.”
JMC is the largest independent tubular manufacturer in North America, with one of the most diverse product platforms in the North American pipe and tube industry. Through its Wheatland and Atlas Tube divisions, it maintains a leading market position in North America in each of its three core product categories: Hollow Structural Sections (HSS), standard pipe and electrical conduit. Formed in December 2006 through the combination of John Maneely Company and Atlas Tube, JMC is headquartered in Beachwood, Ohio, and operates eleven plants in five U.S. states and one Canadian province. JMC has a total production capacity of more than 3 million tons of steel pipe and tube per annum.
