BASF is prepared to underwrite employment and plant guarantees as part of any takeover of Evonik, according to Reuters, which cited two people familiar with the Ludwigshafen group’s thinking. One insider stressed the company considers itself bound by those commitments and has no intention of backtracking on them.
The concession appears designed to soften mounting resistance from labor representatives, who have grown openly skeptical of a full sale of Evonik to its larger rival. IG BCE chief Michael Vassiliadis and board member Alexander Bercht warned against hasty steps in a letter and questioned whether handing Evonik entirely to BASF was the right course. Bercht also serves as deputy chairman of Evonik’s supervisory board, giving the union a direct seat at the table.
Düsseldorf Enters the Fray
Political pressure is building in parallel. North Rhine-Westphalia’s state government made clear that Evonik’s jobs and its independent development must not be jeopardized by any takeover. The SPD parliamentary group in the Düsseldorf state legislature went further, filing a motion calling for the state to take a stake in Evonik, with the aim of securing long-term corporate independence. The proposal envisioned a tie-up with the RAG Foundation to lock in a controlling majority of more than 50% of the shares, and the matter was slated for a vote in the state parliament.
The Decision Rests with One Shareholder
None of that matters, however, without the RAG Foundation, which holds 44% of Evonik according to Handelsblatt. The foundation’s board of trustees was briefed by its executive board on Friday about BASF’s interest, but stopped short of a formal resolution, pointing instead to direct talks between the two chemical groups.
BASF has been exploring a deal for roughly two weeks, a period in which the shares have gained 2.0%. Evonik’s management turned down an initial non-binding offer at the time. Negotiating circles put that original bid at around EUR 22.15 per share, according to Reuters, while Handelsblatt estimated the total volume at roughly EUR 10 billion. Sources close to BASF indicated the existing offer need not be final and that improvements are possible should concrete negotiations materialize. The dpa news agency reported the bid at EUR 22.15 per share, or a total of more than EUR 10.3 billion, which the RAG Foundation rejected. Evonik, for its part, has applied the brakes, stating that no talks are taking place and that no new offer has been confirmed.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Evonik?
A Stock Within Touching Distance of Its Peak
The equity has taken the latest round of deal chatter in stride. Evonik shares changed hands at EUR 21.02, a decline of 1.9% on the day, yet remain within striking distance of their 52-week high of EUR 21.62 set last Friday. In pre-market trading the stock stood at EUR 21.36, just 1.2% below that peak.
Pharma Wins Overshadowed by Deal Noise
Away from the takeover saga, Evonik is pressing ahead with its operational repositioning. At the CPHI trade fair in Milan, the specialty chemicals group collected the CPHI Pharma Award 2026 in the “Digital Transformation” category for its technology-enabled development laboratories. It also unveiled a newly developed biodegradable polymer platform for pharmaceutical carrier systems.
Whether that operational progress can keep pace with market enthusiasm will become clearer on November 3, 2026, when Evonik publishes its quarterly statement for the third quarter of 2026. Until then, the central question is likely to remain whether BASF’s pledges on sites and jobs are enough to bring management and the RAG Foundation to the negotiating table.
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