According to Bloomberg, Siemens and Alstom are considering adding sweeteners to a package of assets for sale in a last-ditch effort to gain antitrust approval from the European Commission and salvage their rail deal, according to people familiar with the matter.
The German and French train equipment suppliers’ new offerings include possible contract extensions and patents and are being discussed with antitrust officials and potential bidders, said the people, who asked not to be named because the discussions aren’t public. The former rivals are working to save the tie up that would have combined sales of about €15 billion (US$17 billion) from getting vetoed by the Commission on concerns it’ll crimp competition, they said.
It remains unclear whether the steps will be enough to avoid antitrust opposition, the people said, though the recent meetings with European officials left the companies slightly more optimistic a compromise can be reached, one of them said.
Full Content: Bloomberg
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