BASF plans to acquire leading Swiss specialty chemical company Ciba, and will make a public takeover offer to Ciba’s shareholders.

With the acquisition of Ciba, BASF wants to strengthen its portfolio and expand its position in specialty chemicals with products and services for a variety of customer industries, in particular the plastics and coatings industries. BASF would also become the leading supplier in paper chemicals.

In the fast-growing and highly profitable market for plastics additives, BASF would expand its portfolio by gaining important product segments such as UV stabilizers and antioxidants. In the area of coating effect materials, the combination of BASF and Ciba would offer an extensive range of pigments, resins and additives,” BASF said in a release.