MUTTENZ, Switzerland — SABIC has received the final outstanding regulatory approvals from competition authorities for the purchase of a 24.99% stake in Clariant. The deal, which will close in the next few days, makes SABIC Clariant's largest strategic anchor shareholder and second anchor shareholder beside the group of former shareholders of Süd-Chemie.

SABIC, the world's third largest diversified chemical company and a long-standing partner of Clariant in the catalyst joint venture Scientific Design, entered into a purchase agreement for the acquisition of the stake in Clariant in January 2018.

"With SABIC receiving all the regulatory approvals and the transaction set to be completed, we look forward to further developing the strategic relationship between both companies in order to generate value for all stakeholders," said Hariolf Kottmann, CEO of Clariant.

Clariant and SABIC are discussing possible future collaborations that will generate value for the stakeholders of both companies. Any outcome of these discussions will be announced in due course.