The reaction process begins when a strong base is used to form a carbanion at the halogenated position. Because of the ester, this carbanion is a resonance-stabilized enolate, which makes it relatively easy to form. This nucleophilic structure attacks another carbonyl component, forming a new carbon–carbon bond. These first two steps are similar to a base-catalyzed aldol reaction. The oxygen anion in this aldol-like product then does an intramolecular SN2 attack on the formerly-nucleophilic halide-bearing position, displacing the halide to form an epoxide. This reaction sequence is thus a condensation reaction since there is a net loss of HCl when the two reactant molecules join.