(RTTNews.com) – German drug maker Merck KGaA said it is on track to complete the acquisition of life science company Sigma-Aldrich Corp. and is is the process of fulfilling antitrust commitments to the European Commission.
The acquisition is expected to close within the next two months. Merck in August had forecast to complete the transaction in the third quarter.
The planned acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich for about $17 billion or 13.1 billion euros was announced in September 2014.
Merck said negotiations with potential buyers are in the final stage to sell parts of Sigma-Aldrich’s solvents and inorganics business. This was a condition set for obtaining European Commission approval. Merck on August 11 announced that it had obtained all other necessary antitrust approvals.
Merck added that once a binding agreement has been signed, the European Commission needs to approve the buyer before Merck can proceed with the completion of the Sigma-Aldrich acquisition.
Sigma-Aldrich shareholders approved the merger with Merck in December 2014. Merck has also completed its capital markets activities to finance the transaction with the placement of a 2.1 billion euro bond at the end of August.
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