Nokia Corporation (NOK)

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Nokia Wins EU Approval for Acquisition of Alcatel-Lucent - Update

7:08 AM ET 7/24/15 | Dow Jones
By Tom Fairless

BRUSSELS--Nokia Corp. (NOK1V.HE) cleared a key hurdle toward its 15.6 billion euro ($17.1 billion) acquisition of French rival Alcatel-Lucent S.A. (ALU.FR) after the European Union's antitrust regulator approved the deal unconditionally following a brief investigation.

The deal, agreed in April, aims to create a European telecommunications-equipment giant that would allow the companies to fend off rising Chinese rivals.

The European Commission, the EU's top antitrust authority, on Friday said the transaction didn't pose concerns because the companies "are not close competitors" and would continue to face "a number of strong global competitors" after their merger.

In an emailed statement, Nokia said it had also received antitrust clearances in Albania, Canada, Colombia and Russia. It has previously disclosed approvals in Brazil, Serbia and the U.S.

The company said it expects the deal to close in the first half of next year, and would continue to work with the remaining antitrust authorities toward that goal. The deal remains to be approved by Nokia's shareholders.

In Europe, while the companies' combined market share would reach 30% or more for "several specific types of equipment," EU regulators said overlaps were limited because Nokia is strong in Europe where Alcatel-Lucent is a smaller player, and Alcatel-Lucent is strong in North America where Nokia's activities are limited.

Strong competitors in Europe for the merged company include Ericsson (ERIC) and Huawei (002502.SZ), as well as ZTE Corp. (0763.HK) of China and Samsung Electronics (005930.SE) of South Korea, the EU said.

"Samsung is expected to play a more significant role in the near future in relation to the newest-generation mobile telecommunications equipment," the regulator added, referring to so-called 4G and 5G networks.

The EU opened its investigation in mid-June.

Write to Tom Fairless at [e-mail]

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July 24, 2015 07:08 ET (11:08 GMT)

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