Taiyo Nippon, Carlyle seen as frontrunners to buy Linde/Praxair assets -sources

NIPPON SANSO HOLDINGS

20/06/2018 08:19

NEW YORK/FRANKFURT, June 20 (Reuters) - Taiyo Nippon Sanso
Corp  4091.T  and private equity firm Carlyle Group  CG.N  have
emerged as frontrunners to buy assets that gases groups Linde
 LIN1.DE  and Praxair  PX.N  need to divest to seal their
planned merger, people close to the matter said.
    The bidders are expected to enter into exclusive
negotiations shortly on the sale of two packages of assets worth
about $8 billion in total, the people added.
    Taiyo is in the frame to bag the European package, while
Carlyle would take the U.S. assets, they said.
    The two deals could clear the way to secure the fate of an
all-share merger of equals that Munich-based Linde and Danbury,
Connecticut-based Praxair struck to create a global leader in
gas distribution, with revenues of almost $29 billion and 88,000
staff.
    Linde and Carlyle declined to comment, while Praxair and
Taiyo were not immediately available for comment.

 (Reporting by Harry Brumpton, Arno Schuetze, Greg Roumeliotis
Additional reporting by Ludwig Burger and Taiga Uranaka
Editing by Douglas Busvine)
 ((arno.schuetze@thomsonreuters.com; +49.69.7565.1197; Reuters
Messaging: arno.schuetze.reuters.com@reuters.net))