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EU to decide on Adnoc’s Covestro deal by May 12

By Reuters
Adnoc struck the deal to buy Germany's Covestro, its biggest-ever acquisition, last October Covestro
Adnoc struck the deal to buy Germany's Covestro, its biggest-ever acquisition, last October

European Union (EU) antitrust regulators will decide by May 12 whether to clear Abu Dhabi state oil major Adnoc’s €15.9 billion ($17.2 billion) takeover of German chemicals company Covestro, a regulatory filing on the European Commission website showed.

Adnoc struck the deal for its biggest-ever acquisition last October as Middle East countries seek to reduce their dependence on oil.

The commission, which acts as the competition enforcer in the 27-country EU, can either clear the deal with or without conditions or open a four-month investigation after its preliminary review.

Deals in which non-EU companies acquire EU entities can be subject to the bloc’s foreign subsidies regulation, which allows the watchdog to crack down on unfair foreign state support for companies.

UAE telecoms group e&’s bid for parts of Czech telecoms company PPF last year was cleared only after the former offered concessions.

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