Before the merger with Linde: Praxair sells European activities to Japanese | Industrial gases | sectors

The American partner Praxair is part of a large part of its European activities for the merger project with the German industrial gas group Linde. The Japanese group Taiyo Nippon Sanso is taking over the activities for a total of five billion euros, as announced by the three companies.

Linde and Praxair want to remove antitrust concerns from the European Commission to get green light from the world's largest manufacturer of industrial gases to get oxygen and helium. In the United States and other countries, negotiations with authorities and bidders for parts of the business are still ongoing, Linde said. Significant hurdles are expected in the United States, for example, where merger partners seek the approval of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). There are also activities worth a billion dollars for sale. According to insiders, there is the financial investor Carlye the nose forward.

Linde's shares were in the morning with a more than 3.5 percent to the biggest winners in the main Dax index. Baader Bank analysts reiterated their purchase note.

Companies separating from Praxair generated sales of about 1.3 billion euros last year. According to the US concern, this affects about 2,500 employees in twelve European countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. . Taiyo enters the European market, where the former world leader is at home, the French Air Liquide

The merger of Linde and Praxair, decided last year, is a race against the clock Shareholders are required by German law within twelve months To be clear on the success of the transaction, it must have been completed by October 24 at the latest. This applies to both antitrust approvals and the sale of the company's shares in order to dispel the concerns raised by antitrust authorities.

The European Commission had announced that it would decide by August 24th when it was necessary to approve the merger. Linde reiterated Thursday that the merger is expected to be completed in the second half of 2018. It is only when the whole project is vain that the Praxair case in Europe goes to Taiyo

The merged company, which Linde is named and is expected to be based in Ireland, with a turnover of 29 billion dollars (24.9 billion euros) exceeding the French Air Liquide and employing 88,000 people. (Reuters / apa / red)