CONSOLIDATION, MERGER, SALE OR CONVEYANCE (i) The Issuer may consolidate with or merge into any other person, or sell, convey or transfer all or substantially all of its assets to any other person, without the consent of the Holders of the Notes, provided that: (w) the entity (if other than the Issuer) formed by or resulting from any such consolidation or merger shall be organized and existing under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia, and shall expressly assume, by an amendment to the Fiscal Agency Agreement and the Notes pursuant to the Fiscal Agency Agreement, the due and punctual payment of the principal of, and premium, if any, and interest on, the Notes and the due and punctual performance and observance of all the covenants and conditions to be performed or observed by the Issuer pursuant to the Fiscal Agency Agreement and the Notes; (x) such amendment shall be in form reasonably satisfactory to the Fiscal and Principal Paying Agent, shall be duly executed by the entity succeeding the Issuer and, when so executed, shall constitute a valid and legally binding agreement of such entity succeeding the Issuer, enforceable against such entity in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent transfer and other similar laws affecting creditors' rights generally and to general principles of equity, regardless of whether in a proceeding in equity or at law, and shall be delivered to the Fiscal and Principal Paying Agent; (y) immediately after giving effect to such transaction, no Event of Default and no event which, after notice or lapse of time or both, would become an Event of Default, shall have occurred or be continuing; and (z) the Issuer has delivered to the Fiscal and Principal Paying Agent an officers' certificate and an opinion of counsel, each stating that the conditions precedent to such consolidation, merger, sale, conveyance or transfer have been satisfied. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Issuer may sell, convey or transfer all or substantially all of its assets to any person which is directly or indirectly wholly-owned by one or more of the Issuer, the Guarantor and their wholly-owned Subsidiaries.
(ii) The Guarantor may consolidate with or merge into any other person, or sell, convey or transfer all or substantially all of its assets to any other person, without the consent of the Holders of the Notes, provided that: (v) the purchasing or transferee corporation or the successor, continuing or resulting corporation in the case of a merger or consolidation (if the Guarantor is not the surviving corporation), as the case may be (the "Successor Guarantor"), expressly assumes, by an amendment to the Fiscal Agency Agreement and the Guarantee pursuant to the Fiscal Agency Agreement, the obligations of the Guarantor under the Fiscal Agency Agreement and the Guarantee and the due and punctual performance and observance of all the covenants and conditions to be performed or observed by the Guarantor pursuant to the Fiscal Agency Agreement and the Guarantee; (w) such amendment shall be in form reasonably satisfactory to the Fiscal and Principal Paying Agent, shall be duly executed by the Successor Guarantor and, when so executed, shall constitute a valid and legally binding agreement of such Successor Guarantor, enforceable against such Successor Guarantor in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent transfer and other similar laws affecting creditors' rights generally and to general principles of equity, regardless of whether in a proceeding in equity or at law, and shall be delivered to the Fiscal and Principal Paying Agent; (x) if such Successor Guarantor is organized under the laws of a jurisdiction other than the Federal Republic of Germany (a "Successor Guarantor Jurisdiction"), such Successor Guarantor agrees to assume the Guarantor's obligations under the Guarantee to pay any U.S. Additional Amounts pursuant to Section 3(b)(i) herein or any amounts akin to German Additional Amounts pursuant to Section 3(b)(ii) herein imposed by the laws of the jurisdiction in which the Successor Guarantor is organized; (y) immediately after giving effect to such transaction, no Event of Default and no event which, after notice or lapse of time or both, would become an Event of Default, shall have occurred or be continuing; and (z) the Guarantor shall have delivered to the Fiscal and Principal Paying Agent an officers' certificate and an opinion of counsel, each stating that the conditions precedent to such consolidation, merger, sale, conveyance or transfer have been satisfied. In addition to the foregoing conditions, in the event of any such assumption of the obligations of the Issuer or the Guarantor, the Issuer or the Guarantor, as the case may be, will be required to deliver an opinion of its counsel of recognized standing to the effect that such assumption of the Issuer's or the Guarantor's obligations under the Notes or the Guarantee, as the case may be, shall not be deemed for U.S. federal income tax purposes to be a taxable exchange of the Notes for new Notes by the Holders thereof, resulting in the recognition of gain or loss for such purposes or resulting in any other material adverse tax consequences to Holders of the Notes.
