European Union (EU) regulators will make a decision on global agribusiness giant Bunge Global’s proposed acquisition of Glencore-backed Viterra by 18 July, according to a Reuters report citing a European Commission (EC) filing.
Last June, Bunge and Viterra announced they had agreed to a merger that would create one of the world’s largest agribusiness companies, bringing it closer in scale to leading agribusiness giants Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and Cargill, the 17 June report said.
Once given regulatory approval, the companies said they expected the transaction to close this summer.
Bunge has also announced its new leadership team, according to the report.
The EC could either clear the deal with or without remedies after its preliminary review or it could open a four-month investigation if it had serious concerns, Reuters wrote.
Bunge chief executive Greg Heckman has been quoted as saying the company might be able to avoid selling assets to win regulatory approval due to healthy competition in commodities markets in Canada, the USA, Brazil, Argentina, China and parts of Europe.
However, the Canadian competition watchdog had raised major concerns while farm groups also had similar worries, the report said.
The deal also needed regulatory approval in North America, South America and China.
Owned by Switzerland-based commodity trading giant Glencore PLC since 2012, Viterra handles over 125M tonnes/year of agricultural products, including grains, oilseeds, pulses, rice, sugar and vegetable oil, as well as a range of animal feed products.
Missouri-based Bunge is a leading soyabean processor and a major supplier of speciality plant-based oils and fats.
