PITTSBURGH, July 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Koppers Holdings Inc. (NYSE: KOP) today announced the sale of its 51% ownership interest in Koppers Arch Investments Pty Ltd. ("Koppers Arch") to Arch Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE: ARJ), its joint venture partner. Koppers Arch sells timber preservation chemicals and has operations in Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia and South Africa. Its products are primarily non-coal tar based chemicals, including copper chrome arsenates ("CCA") and light organic solvent preservatives ("LOSP").
Revenues for Koppers Arch for 2006 net of inter-company sales amounted to $51.5 million, or 4% of 2006 sales, and net income amounted to $1.1 million net of inter-company transactions ($0.6 million after minority interest). The estimated selling price is approximately $19 million, which the Company intends to use primarily for debt reduction. The selling price is subject to a post-closing working capital adjustment.
Walter W. Turner, President and CEO of Koppers, said, "We were pleased to complete this sale to our long-time partner Arch Chemicals and believe that the change in ownership will be beneficial to all parties including the customers and employees of the former joint venture. More specifically for Koppers, the completion of this transaction enhances our focus on our core business strategies in support of continued growth in the aluminum and railroad markets and allows us to accelerate debt reduction."
About Koppers
Koppers, with corporate headquarters and a research center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a global integrated producer of carbon compounds and treated wood products. Koppers operates facilities in the United States, United Kingdom, Denmark, Australia and China. The stock of Koppers Holdings Inc. is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "KOP." For more information, visit us on the Web: www.koppers.com. Questions concerning investor relations should be directed to Brian H. McCurrie at 412 227 2153 or Michael W. Snyder at 412 227 2131.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on management's current expectations, estimates and projections. All statements that address expectations or projections about the future, including statements about the company's strategy for growth, product development, market position, expected expenditures and financial results are forward- looking statements. Some of the forward-looking statements may be identified by words like "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "intends," "projects," "indicates," and similar expressions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors, including those discussed more fully elsewhere in this release and in documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by Koppers, particularly its latest annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly report on Form 10-Q, as well as others, could cause results to differ materially from those stated. These factors include, but are not limited to, changes in the laws, regulations, policies and economic conditions, including inflation, interest and foreign currency exchange rates, of countries in which the Company does business; competitive pressures; the loss of one or more key customer or supplier relationships; customer insolvencies; successful integration of structural changes, including restructuring plans, acquisitions, divestitures and alliances; cost and availability of raw materials; and other economic, business, competitive, regulatory and/or operational factors affecting the business of Koppers generally.
SOURCE Koppers Holdings Inc.
CONTACT: Brian H. McCurrie, Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of Koppers Holdings Inc., +1-412 227 2153, McCurrieBH@koppers.com