ChemChina waits further 90 days to close Syngenta deal

Chinese chemical giant ChemChina has extended the deadline of its offer to purchase the agrochemical group Syngenta Basel to January 5. The previous deadline was to expire next Tuesday.
It is the fourth time that the Chinese group extends its tender offer (Opa): the giant state had already been extended to May its initial offer until July 18 and then to July until 13 September and until September 8th of November. "ChemChina is aiming to obtain the remaining outstanding regulatory approvals in the first quarter of 2017," the firm said in a statement.

The extension seems likely after the European Commission has opened an in-depth probe to assess whether the proposed acquisition of Syngenta by China National Chemical Corp. (ChemChina) is in line with the E.U. Merger Regulation. The European Commission said it will assess whether the deal may reduce competition in crop protection products and the supply of certain input chemicals. The investigation could last up to 90 days.

Margrethe Vestager, commissioner in charge of competition policysaid that “Therefore we need to carefully assess whether the proposed merger would lead to higher prices or a reduced choice for farmers."