As managing editor of The Reuters news agency is reporting that Koch Industries Inc. plans to bid for GE Plastics. The report, which quotes "sources close to the process," says Koch is teaming with Blackstone Group.
The story names other bidders, too: Apollo Management, Carlyle Group (teaming up with Texas Pacific Group) and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (working with Bain Capital). Many of these companies have other plastics holdings, so it would be interesting to see if, for example, TPG would combine GE Plastics with its existing Kraton business. That's just speculation, of course. But with private equity companies owning so many plastics businesses these days, the possibilities are intriguing.
The Reuters story also says that the bidding teams will receive additional details about GE Plastics' finances by the end of this week. So it doesn't sound like a deal is going to happen in the next week or two.
Koch, which several weeks ago bought Huntsman Corp.'s commodity plastics business, is the second-largest private company in the world, behind Cargill Inc.