Australia Won't Oppose Sika-MBCC Deal, Subject to Divestment Conditions

By Pierre Bertrand

Australia's competition and consumer commission said Thursday that it won't oppose Sika's takeover of MBCC Group on the condition that the Swiss specialty-chemical company divests MBCC assets.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said it wouldn't oppose the deal if Sika, under a court-enforced plan, divests all of MBCC's business in Australia and New Zealand including Bluey Technologies and divests MBCC's admixtures business in Europe, Switzerland, the U.K., the U.S. and Canada.

The divestments are part of a remedy process to address global competition concerns related to Sika's 5.5 billion Swiss francs ($6.13 billion) takeover announced in November 2021.

Sika's plan has received conditional approval from the European Commission. Last month, the company said the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority had accepted that Sika divest MBCC assets to international private-equity firm Cinven.

Sika had originally intended to dispose of the assets to Ineos Enterprises, but changed tack following provisional feedback from the British regulator.

Sika said it expects its acquisition of MBCC will be closed in the first half of the year.

Write to Pierre Bertrand at pierre.bertrand@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 20, 2023 08:10 ET (12:10 GMT)

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