AUSTRALIAN businessman Andrew Liveris has signalled that his four-decade career at multinational Dow Chemical will end after a giant merger with rival DuPont is bedded down, opening up the possibility of a more active leadership role Down Under.
The American industrial companies confirmed on Friday they planned to combine into a colossal $US120 billion ($167 billion) firm, before splitting into three separately listed entities in 18 to 24 months.
Darwin-raised Mr Liveris, chief executive of Michigan-based Dow Chemical for the past decade and one of Australia's most senior global business leaders, will become executive chairman of the proposed new firm.
DuPont chief executive Edward Breen, who has been in the job for just two months, will be chief executive of the merged company if US competition regulators permit the so-called "merger of equals".
Mr Breen will oversee the agriculture and specialties divisions, while Mr Liveris will set up the materials science business, before they are spun off around 2017.
Mr Liveris, a chemical engineer, said on Friday it has been a "tremendous opportunity" to run Dow Chemical and he and Mr Breen had "checked their egos at the door" to seal a deal.
"I'm very happy that once we close this deal, execute and put the plan in place to get the deal launched and the spins, then we'll make the right succession decision and there's no need for me to be that person," he told financial news channel CNBC. Echoing that sentiment separately on a conference call, Mr Liveris said: "I do want to eventually go to the place where the future of the company is not just beholden to my presence."
The deal fulfils Mr Liveris's long-held ambition of combining two of America's oldest companies and will allow him to exit on a high note. He rang Mr Breen in early October to seek a merger, the day he became Dupont CEO after acting on an interim basis.
It remains to be seen if Mr Liveris, an outside business adviser to US President Barack Obama and director of technology company IBM, would entertain spending more time in his native Australia, after moving abroad with Dow in 1985 to roles in Asia and the US.
Marking his Order of Australia award last year, the son of Greek immigrants revealed to The Australian Financial Review that he harboured interest in entering politics.
In Canberra, he has been a vocal advocate on energy and manufacturing policies. In Washington, Mr Liveris is co-chairman of Mr Obama's advanced manufacturing partnership and until recently was chairman of the US Business Council.
He is known to have links to US presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton and some associates have speculated that America's appointee system for cabinet positions could make him a contender for a government department secretary, the equivalent of a federal minister in Australia.
Mr Liveris, 61, was not available for interview over the weekend.
Despite his impressive business credentials, Mr Liveris's reputation has come under scrutiny over the past year after he used company funds to pay for for lavish international sporting events and luxury holidays for his family. He repaid $US719,000 following an audit committee review and was reportedly subject to a US Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry over the affair. Dow has denied any wrongdoing.
Mr Liveris's resolve was further tested after he came under sustained attack last year from prominent activist hedge fund investor Dan Loeb, who vilified Mr Liveris's management and demanded Dow be broken up. Mr Loeb's Third Point successfully campaigned to have two directors join the Dow board last year, and he agreed to a 12-month public gag, due to end on Monday.
Similarly, activist shareholder Nelson Peltz, of Trian Fund Management, pressed DuPont for a merger with Dow.
Mr Liveris was the driving force behind the tie-up. He said shareholders, including Third Point, would "win" from the tax efficient deal.
The 50-50 merger is expected to generate $US3 billion of cost synergies, by rationalising functions and cutting staff. US anti-trust regulators need to approve the deal.
Their share prices jumped more than 10 per cent after rumours of a merger emerged on Wednesday; Dow's share price fell 2.8 per cent and DuPont lost 5.5 per cent on Friday when details of the deal were announced.
Mr Liveris's 10-year reign as CEO has had ups and downs. Early on, Dow narrowly survived the financial crisis thanks to a $US3 billion financing from Warren Buffett, before more recently selling off lower margin businesses and returning Dow to stronger profitability.
