Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDS-A) and BG Group plc announced June 16 they received U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) antitrust clearance for their proposed $70 billion deal—one of the biggest energy tie-ups in years.
Shell’s acquisition of BG, scheduled to close in early 2016, requires further regulatory reviews from several foreign agencies—including the EU, Australia, China and Brazil—due to the international scope of the two giant firms’ operations. But the FTC ruling might serve as a model for further regulatory reviews.
“Securing early termination of the U.S. antitrust waiting period from the FTC at this early stage is a clear demonstration of the good progress we’re making on the deal. We’re well under way with the antitrust and regulatory filing processes in relevant jurisdictions around the world and we’re confident that, following the usual thorough and professional review by the relevant authorities, the deal will receive the necessary approvals,” Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said in a statement. “We remain on track for completion in early 2016.”
Industry observers expect the megamerger to spur additional oil and gas combines following the sharp drop in commodity prices in the past year. It would rank as the third-biggest oil and gas deal ever by enterprise value. The combined group is expected to offer numerous deals on noncore operations following closure. Press reports indicated such sales could total $30 billion in value.
In April, the two companies agreed to a $70 billion cash-and-share merger. BG shareholders will get 383 U.K. pence in cash; and 0.4454 Shell B shares for each share held, giving them 19% of the enlarged Shell/BG organization.
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