Shearman & Sterling is advising Albemarle Corporation on its acquisition of Rockwood Holdings, Inc. in a transaction valued at approximately $6.2 billion. The transaction is subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015.

Albemarle Corporation, headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is a leading global developer, manufacturer, and marketer of highly-engineered specialty chemicals for consumer electronics, petroleum refining, utilities, packaging, construction, automotive/transportation, pharmaceuticals, crop protection, food-safety and custom chemistry services. Albemarle employs approximately 3,900 people and serves customers in approximately 100 countries.

Rockwood Holdings, Inc., based in Princeton, NJ, is a leading global developer, manufacturer and marketer of technologically advanced and high value-added specialty chemicals. It is a leading integrated and low cost global producer of lithium and lithium compounds used in lithium-ion batteries for electronic devices, alternative transportation vehicles and future energy storage technologies, meeting the significant growth in global demand for these products. The company is also the second largest global producer of products and services for metal processing, servicing the aerospace, general and European luxury automotive industries.

The Team