Clariant Hires Goldman to Fend off Activist in Huntsman Merger

Specialty chemicals group Clariant said it has hired Goldman Sachs as an additional advisor to help stave off an activist investor's campaign to derail its planned merger with U.S. peer Huntsman .

"We can confirm that we have retained Goldman Sachs as additional advisor in relation to the investment, the positions taken and demands made by White Tale," a Clariant spokeswoman said on Monday.

The Swiss company is facing pressure from White Tale Holdings, which holds more than 10 percent of Clariant's shares and is lobbying other shareholders to oppose the $20 billion merger with Huntsman.

Clariant said in May that it was working with Citi and UBS on the planned merger, while Bank of America and Moelis were acting as Huntsman's financial advisers.