Kirkland Advises JBT on Takeover of Marel
Kirkland & Ellis advised JBT Corporation (NYSE: JBT) on a definitive agreement to make a voluntary takeover for all of the issued and outstanding shares of food processing company Marel hf (ICL: Marel). JBT is a global technology solutions provider to high-value segments of the food & beverage industry. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2024, subject to regulatory clearance and shareholder approvals. Marel shareholders will have the option to elect to receive either all cash, all JBT common stock, or a combination of cash and JBT common stock, subject to a proration feature that will result in Marel shareholders receiving, in the aggregate, approximately €950 million in cash and a 38% ownership stake in the combined company. In connection with entry into the transaction agreement, JBT entered into a €1.9 billion bridge facility to support the transaction, including to fund the cash portion of the offer.
The Kirkland team was led by corporate partners David Klein, Carlo Zenkner and Daniel Wolf and associates Chrissy Pak and Wei Yang and foreign associate Blánaid Corrigan; antitrust & competition partners Jim Mutchnik, Paula Riedel, Sion Davies and Scott Scheele and of counsel Donna Peel; capital markets partners Sophia Hudson, Jennifer Lee and Zoey Hitzert and associate Shelby Brown; debt finance partners Rachael Lichman, Purun Cheong, Chris Shield and Tom Roberts and associates Julia Choi and Jacob Sims; tax partners Mike Carew and Steven Cantor; and executive compensation partners Michael Falk and Jared Whalen and associate Rebecca Kostelak.
