Airgas Inc. on Monday told shareholders that if Air Products & Chemicals Inc.'s buyout plans don't receive majority support, Airgas will call a special meeting of its stockholders on June 21 next year.
At that meeting, Airgas said it will take action to assure that Air Products or other stockholders will be able to nominate a number of individuals to its board. That would make it so that if a plurality of Airgas stockholders vote for those nominees, they, together with any Air Products nominees elected at the September 2010 Annual Meeting, would constitute a majority of the Airgas board.
Air Products has offered to buy Airgas Inc. for $63.50 per share, plus about $1.7 billion of debt — a price Airgas directors maintain "grossly undervalues" the company.
According to Airgas, holders of nearly 80 percent of the company's stock have not tendered their shares to Air Products as of Aug. 13.
Air Products, of Allentown, Pa., sells argon, nitrogen, hydrogen, helium, oxygen and other gases for industrial, medical and other uses. It has been negotiating for 10 months to buy Airgas, which sells gases and provides gas equipment, welding products, tools, safety gear and janitorial supplies.
