Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) has been awarded an additional 318 million USD in an arbitration case with Petrochemical Industries Co. of Kuwait. The additional award is tied to a dispute over a scuttled multibillion-dollar joint venture in 2008 that almost derailed the chemical company’s efforts to complete a huge acquisition. The award, from the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce, brings the total amount Dow Chemical has been awarded to $2.48 billion and is the last step in the disciplined arbitration process, bringing the process to an end. The partial award of $2.16 billion was announced last May. In December 2008, Dow said Kuwaiti officials informed it the Persian Gulf country was scrapping a deal under which the state-owned petroleum company was to pay Dow Chemical $7.5 billion for a 50% stake in several chemical plants. Dow intended to use that money to help finance its $15.3 billion purchase of Rohm & Haas Co., which makes coatings and electronic materials. The decision, by Kuwait’s top petroleum-policy council to bail out came amid fears that plunging oil prices had made the deal less attractive came less than a week before the deal was to become effective. Both Dow and the Kuwaiti company were also planning to collect $1.5 billion apiece from the joint venture, known as K-Dow Petrochemicals.
