EU gives BASF conditional approval to buy Bayer assets

Chemicals giant BASF secured the antitrust approval of the European Commission on Monday to acquire a package of businesses from drug and crop chemical maker Bayer after pledging to sell some assets to address competition concerns.

The EC said that it “did not identify competition concerns with most parts of the transaction.” However, the concessions addressed concerns that the deal may reduce innovation for some herbicides and certain seed treatments.

According to the EC, BASF will sell one of the overlapping lines of research for the development of non-selective herbicides and its nematicidal seed treatment product Trunemco.

BASF is acquiring some of Bayer’s seed and herbicide assets as well as the global vegetable seeds business and digital farming business and certain seed treatments.

Bayer is selling the assets in return for EU approval for its USD 62.5 billion acquisition of U.S. peer Monsanto. It received the go-ahead last month.