PARIS, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Sanofi-aventis
[(EURONEXT: SAN) and (NYSE: SNY)] announced today it has commenced
a tender offer for all outstanding shares of common stock of
Genzyme Corporation (Nasdaq:
GENZ) for $69 per share, net to the seller in cash, without
interest and less any required withholding taxes. The
transaction is valued at approximately $18.5 billion. The offer,
which was unanimously approved by sanofi-aventis’ Board of
Directors, is scheduled to expire at 11:59 p.m., New York City time
on December 10, 2010.
While sanofi-aventis’ strong preference is to engage in
constructive discussions with Genzyme, Genzyme’s Board and
management team’s continued refusal to do so has led sanofi-aventis
to commence the tender offer. A meeting between the two CEOs
on September 20, 2010, proved unproductive, despite several
attempts by sanofi-aventis to advance discussions. Sanofi-aventis
executives met recently with shareholders who collectively own more
than 50 percent of Genzyme’s outstanding shares. The conversations
revealed that those shareholders were frustrated with Genzyme’s
persistent refusal to have meaningful discussions regarding
sanofi-aventis’ proposal. Sanofi-aventis sent a letter to
Genzyme’s Board today informing it of the company’s intention to
commence the tender offer, a copy of which is included with this
release.
“Sanofi-aventis is committed to a transaction with Genzyme, and
we believe that our offer reflects both Genzyme’s upside potential
and its current operational challenges,” said Christopher A.
Viehbacher, Chief Executive Officer of sanofi-aventis. “Our strong
preference has been and continues to be to work together
constructively with the Genzyme Board to reach a mutually agreeable
transaction, but our attempts to do so have been blocked at every
turn. Our recent meetings with Genzyme shareholders
demonstr
‘/>”/>
SOURCE