Linde: EU clears merger with Praxair, under conditions
(CercleFinance.com) - The European Commission cleared on Tuesday German industrial gas supplier Linde to proceed with its merger with US rival Praxair, subject to the divestiture of an "extensive remedy package.
"
To address the Commission's concerns, Praxair and Linde will have to sell Praxair's entire gas business in Europe and will have to transfer Praxair's stake in SIAD, an Italian joint venture active in Central and Eastern Europe and in Italy, to Praxair's current joint venture partner Flow Fin.
Also, the companies will have to divest additional helium sourcing contracts in order to address competitive concerns on an international level, the EU said.
"There are very few companies in the world capable of supplying all these gases," said Margrethe Vestager, the commissionner in charge of competition policy.
"With this decision, we make sure that the merger of Praxair and Linde will not result in further concentration in Europe and that customers will continue to benefit from competition in these markets," she said.
Copyright (c) 2018 CercleFinance.com. All rights reserved.
"
To address the Commission's concerns, Praxair and Linde will have to sell Praxair's entire gas business in Europe and will have to transfer Praxair's stake in SIAD, an Italian joint venture active in Central and Eastern Europe and in Italy, to Praxair's current joint venture partner Flow Fin.
Also, the companies will have to divest additional helium sourcing contracts in order to address competitive concerns on an international level, the EU said.
"There are very few companies in the world capable of supplying all these gases," said Margrethe Vestager, the commissionner in charge of competition policy.
"With this decision, we make sure that the merger of Praxair and Linde will not result in further concentration in Europe and that customers will continue to benefit from competition in these markets," she said.
Copyright (c) 2018 CercleFinance.com. All rights reserved.