EU antitrust regulators gave Adnoc’s proposed EUR 14.7 bn acquisition of German chemicals firm Covestro the all clear, as was expected by anonymous sources that had talked to Reuters last week, according to a statement. This came after the European Commission concluded that the transaction poses no competition concerns due to its minimal effect on the relevant markets.

(Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links to our background as well as external sources.)

Regulatory clearances from countries where Covestro operates have already started pouring in, while Covestro also said it is confident it will receive all the approvals before the deadline. The transaction is expected to close in 2H 2025.

REFRESHER- Adnoc’s new low-carbon energy investment arm XRG secured a 91.3% stake in Covestro following the completion of its voluntary public takeover offer, which marks the largest acquisition from a Middle Eastern buyer in Europe in 16 years. After over a year of negotiations, Covestro’s management expressed support for Adnoc's takeover offer earlier in November.

Adnoc + its subsidiaries have more M&A transactions in the pipeline: Adnoc-owned urea and ammonia producer and exporter Fertiglobe inked an agreement earlier this week to acquire the distribution assets of fertilizer supplier Wengfu Australia. Adnoc has also been shortlisted as a potential buyer of Shell’s downstream assets in South Africa, valued at around USD 1 bn. Meanwhile, XRG is pledging bns of investments in the US’ energy sector, including through USD 9 bn worth of acquisitions of natural gas assets.

Tags: