(World Oil) – Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. won conditional European Union approval for its €12 billion ($13.9 billion) takeover of Covestro AG after it dealt with EU concerns that its state subsidies could stifle competition.
The European Commission said Friday that an offer from ADNOC to maintain Covestro’s intellectual property in Europe as well as concessions on the company’s unlimited state guarantee from the UAE settled its earlier fears. Those commitments are valid for 10 years.
“Commitments offered by ADNOC effectively address the potential negative effects by allowing market participants to access key Covestro patents in the field of sustainability,” EU competition chief Teresa Ribera said in a statement. “Clear, pre-defined access to these patents will enable others to innovate and advance research in an area that is critical for Europe’s future.”
The planned purchase of Covestro would give ADNOC — the biggest oil producer in the United Arab Emirates — control over a German company that supplies materials for some of the world’s most prominent phone and carmakers. ADNOC would own Covestro through its investment unit XRG, set up in last year as the company’s international platform for natural gas, chemicals and energy solutions.
In July, the commission, the EU’s antitrust arm, opened a full-scale investigation into the deal under tough new foreign subsidies rules. These are aimed at preventing sovereign states from using their financial muscle to crush competition in the 27-nation bloc. EU officials warned at the time that ADNOC’s state funding may give it an unfair advantage over rivals with less-deep pockets.
