US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) commissioner Rohit Chopra objected to his agency’s approval of the Linde-Praxair merger as he says it “is not without risks to competition”.
The FTC said on Monday the deal is subect Linde and Praxair divesting assets in nine industrial gases product markets (bulk liquid oxygen, bulk liquid nitrogen, bulk liquid argon, bulk liquid carbon dioxide, bulk liquid hydrogen, bulk refined helium, on-site hydrogen, on-site carbon monoxide, and excimer laser gases) in the US to resolve antitrust charges. The assets will be sold to companies including Messer Group and MATHESON Tri-Gas.
The $90bn megamerger creates the biggest global provider of industrial gases, but Chopra believes it fails to protect competition.
“The merger would be clearly anticompetitive in violation of the Clayton Act, with a high likelihood of harming manufacturers of a wide range of industrial and consumer products,” Chopra said in a statement.
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