EU Launches Antitrust Review of Halliburton-Baker Hughes Merger -- Update
January 12 2016 - 2:22PM
Dow Jones News
By Tom Fairless
BRUSSELS-- Halliburton Co. faces a fresh hurdle toward its $35
billion acquisition of rival Baker Hughes Inc. after European Union
regulators opened a full-blown antitrust investigation into the
deal, warning it raised "serious potential competition
concerns."
The merger, which would unite the second and third largest
oil-field services firms, already faces a growing list of antitrust
concerns in the U.S., while the slump in oil prices complicates the
firms' efforts to find buyers of any assets.
The European Commission, the EU's top antitrust authority, said
Tuesday it would open an in-depth probe into the merger after its
initial inquiry showed the firms were close competitors.
Such inquiries are common in large mergers and don't indicate a
deal will be blocked. If the concerns are confirmed, the companies
can decide to make concessions, such as selling assets, to assuage
the regulator. If those aren't deemed sufficient, Brussels can also
block the deal.
EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said her agency would have
to "look closely" at the merger. The initial probe found serious
potential concerns in more than 30 product and service lines, the
regulator said.
Halliburton and Baker Hughes said the next phase of the EU's
investigation is a normal step in the review process. "Halliburton
expects to offer a substantial remedies package that it believes
will address any substantive competition concerns," they said in a
statement.
The EU has until May 26 to review the deal.
Write to Tom Fairless at tom.fairless@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 12, 2016 14:07 ET (19:07 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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