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Medium Merger & Acquisition

Chemical Consolidation

#Industrials / Chemical #Manufacturing

Practice this intermediate merger & acquisition case interview question from EY in the Industrials / Chemical sector. Includes detailed problem prompt, clarifying questions, structured framework, and expert recommendation. Part of ProHub's 835+ consulting case library.

ProHub Comment

This is a classic M&A case testing both valuation skills and strategic thinking. The candidate must understand synergy identification (cost and revenue), apply valuation multiples from peer data, and recognize integration risks in a consolidating industry. The case structure progresses logically from financial analysis to synergy identification to risk assessment.

Estimated Time 26 minutes
Difficulty Medium
Source NYU
41 / 100
Dowling Chemical Company, headquartered in Michigan, one of the largest global chemical companies in the world that specializes in plastics with $20bn in sales, is considering a merger with industry rival Chem-X, headquartered in Louisiana, who also specializes in plastics with $10bn in sales. The management team of Dowling has retained your firm to provide a recommendation on whether or not to proceed with the merger and assess the risk/rewards of the recommended path forward.

Clarifying Information

  1. Plastic is each company’s only product
  2. Plastic is a commodity product with no differentiation
  3. Both operate mainly in the US and sell to the same set of customers (packaging companies etc)
  4. The Chem-X team will likely run the combined company
  5. Plastics industry is consolidated with 4 main producers accounting for 90% of market share (including both Dowling and Chem-X, who each have 25% share).
Mock Interview
Interviewer

Dowling Chemical Company, headquartered in Michigan, one of the largest global chemical companies in the world that specializes in plastics with $20bn in sales, is considering a merger with industry rival Chem-X, headquartered in Louisiana, who also specializes in plastics with $10bn in sales. The management team of Dowling has retained your firm to provide a recommendation on whether or not to proceed with the merger and assess the risk/rewards of the recommended path forward.

You

Thanks. Before analyzing, I'd like to clarify a few key questions...

Interviewer

Good question. Let me provide some background information...

You

Based on this, I suggest analyzing from these dimensions...

AI Score
Structure Analysis Communication Business Sense Quantitative
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Practice this case with AI Mock Interview

Dowling Chemical ($20bn sales) is evaluating a merger with Chem-X ($10bn sales), a direct competitor in the plastics market. The case requires analyzing whether $4.15bn in synergies (cost savings and pricing power) justify $4bn in merger costs, identifying specific synergy sources, and assessing execution risks including regulatory, cultural, and operational challenges.

Key Insights:

  1. Understand how to calculate synergy value using peer EV/EBITDA multiples and EBITDA margins rather than just absolute dollar amounts
  2. Distinguish between fixed cost synergies (IT, headcount, facilities) and variable cost synergies (purchasing power, manufacturing, distribution)
  3. Recognize that in consolidated, commodity-based industries, regulatory and antitrust concerns can be deal-breakers despite attractive financial economics
  4. Revenue synergies from pricing power and cross-selling can be just as valuable as cost synergies in consolidation scenarios
  5. Integration risks (culture, systems, management structure) require equal attention to financial analysis for deal success

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