GLW Corning Inc

By Austen Hufford 

Corning Inc. said it had successfully exchanged shares of silicone company Dow Corning for cash and an interest in a semiconductor company, ending a 73-year joint venture with Dow Chemical Co.

Corning said it swapped its 50% stake in Dow Corning for $4.8 billion and a 40% stake in Hemlock Semiconductor Group, which makes semiconductors for the solar-panel industry. Dow Chemical now fully owns Dow Corning and will also keep a stake in Hemlock.

The deal comes as the solar industry faces challenges from low energy prices, expiring tax credits and pushback from local electric utilities.

"Our position in Hemlock allows us to capture the potential upside from a rebound in the solar market," Corning Chief Executive Wendell Weeks said.

Dow Chemical said the deal would result in $400 million in cost and growth synergies and provide complementary offerings in segments where Dow Chemical already has market share.

In its first quarter, Dow Corning posted $112 million in profit on $1.32 billion in revenue, both down from the same quarter a year prior. Dow Corning said it hoped to benefit from Dow Chemical's operational expertise, scale and research and development experience.

The deal closed after it received a positive tax ruling from the Internal Revenue Service.

The swap was announced in December on the same day as Dow Chemical agreed to merge with DuPont Co., creating a chemical giant with a market value of about $130 billion. That pending deal, which is currently undergoing regulatory review, will combine two of the oldest companies in the U.S. into a chemical giant called DowDuPont. The combined company is planning to split itself into three separately-traded companies focused on agricultural products, material sciences, and specialty products about 18 to 24 months after the merger closes.

Write to Austen Hufford at austen.hufford@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 01, 2016 14:11 ET (18:11 GMT)

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