BASF wants Evonik: job pledge to 2032, and politicians have a say
BASF is reported to be offering about €24 per Evonik share, some €11bn, and pledges no compulsory redundancies until 2032; the largest shareholder is the RAG Foundation with about 43 per cent.
Markus Kamieth, BASF's chief executive, pledged in a video message that after a takeover of Evonik there would be no compulsory redundancies until 2032 and that collective and site agreements would be honoured. BASF is also reported by Bloomberg, dpa-AFX and Reuters to have raised its offer from €22.15 to about €24 a share; the figure has not been officially confirmed.
What happened
If it succeeds, the deal would be the largest merger in German chemicals. At the end of September Evonik rejected a non-binding offer of €22.15 a share, about €10.3bn, as too low; both sides then confirmed exploratory talks involving the RAG Foundation. According to dpa, the foundation holds about 43 per cent of Evonik, its largest single holding. From its income it pays the long-term costs of hard-coal mining, which ended in 2018. Its board of trustees includes, by virtue of office, the premiers of North Rhine-Westphalia and Saarland, the federal ministers of economics and finance, and the head of the IG BCE union. Mr Kamieth called Essen and NRW important locations and offered to run the Marl and Wesseling chemical parks itself; Evonik wants to sell their operator, Syneqt, which employs about 3,500 people. Evonik itself announced on 23 September that it would cut 3,200 jobs worldwide by 2029, about 2,150 of them in Germany. Evonik and the RAG Foundation declined to comment on the latest reports.
What follows
Assessment: the job pledge is aimed less at the stockmarket than at the RAG Foundation's trustees, who include state and federal politicians and a union leader. Price thus becomes one of two currencies: a higher price strengthens the endowment that pays for mining liabilities, while commitments on sites and jobs secure political consent. It is unclear how the pledge fits with Evonik's current cost programme, which also cuts jobs in Germany. Ruling out compulsory redundancies does not rule out reductions through partial retirement and natural turnover. For the industry, a merger would signal that consolidation is becoming the answer to high energy costs and weak demand. For suppliers and customers in the Ruhr's chemical parks, much would depend on who runs the infrastructure.
What changes in practice
- Evonik staff
- BASF pledges no compulsory redundancies until 2032 and to honour collective agreements; cuts through partial retirement and turnover remain possible.
- Former mining regions
- The sale price helps determine how much capital the RAG Foundation has to cover the long-term costs of hard-coal mining.
- Firms in the chemical parks
- If BASF runs Marl and Wesseling itself, the partner for energy, logistics and site infrastructure changes.
What to watch
- Official statements from Evonik and the RAG Foundation on the raised offer
- Evonik's quarterly results on 3 November
- Antitrust review, should a binding offer follow
Sources
- PROCESS (dpa): BASF erhöht Gebot für Evonik auf 24 Euro je Aktie (25.10.2026)
- Finanztrends (Reuters): BASF sagt Jobgarantie bis 2032 zu (27.10.2026)
- Börse Global (Reuters): Evonik lehnt BASF-Offerte über 10,3 Mrd. Euro ab
- chemeurope: Evonik is cutting 3,200 jobs worldwide (23.09.2026)
- Stuttgarter Zeitung (dpa): Evonik kündigt Abbau von 3.200 Stellen an