By Arno Schuetze and Ludwig Burger
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Macquarie has emerged as the leading bidder for Bayer's stake in chemical park operator Currenta, which the German drugmaker has put on the block to reduce its debt pile, people close to the matter said.
Talks between Bayer and the Australian bank's Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) arm over the 60 percent stake will likely continue for a few more weeks and the deal could still fall apart given the complexity of multi-party negotiations, they added.
If no deal emerges, Bayer may fall back on runner-ups DWS and KKR, the sources said, adding that it was unclear whether the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, which also made a final bid in January, was still interested.
Bayer, Macquarie, KKR and DWS declined to comment, while Omers had no immediate comment.
(Editing by Thomas Seythal)
