US regulators have made the divestment of two Rockwell Collins subsidiaries a condition of allowing its takeover by United Technologies.
UTC must sell the Collins divisions that make pneumatic ice-protection systems and trimmable horizontal-stabilizer actuators (THSAs), says the Department of Justice.
The takeover would otherwise "lessen competition substantially… by combining two of the world's three suppliers of pneumatic ice-protection systems and… combining two of the world's leading producers of THSAs", argues the DoJ.
Assistant attorney general Makan Delrahim states that the proposed divestment "ensures that customers continue to benefit from competition in the supply of these two aircraft components that are critical to safety".
Rockwell's THSA business will be sold to Safran or an "alternate acquirer approved by the United States", says the DoJ.
US approval of the buyer will likewise be required in the divestment of the pneumatic ice-protection systems unit.
As part of the proceedings, the DoJ's anti-trust division has filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in Washington DC's district court to "enjoin the proposed acquisition [of Collins], along with a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the competitive concerns alleged in the lawsuit".
The DoJ adds that the European Commission and the Competition Bureau of Canada investigated the deal and co-operated with the DoJ.
In May, the Commission said its clearance of Rockwell's acquisition was "conditional" on the divestment of activities centred on actuators, pilot controls, ice protection and oxygen systems.
In relation to that investigation, UTC offered to divest Collins' THSA and pilot-control businesses – sited primarily in the USA and Mexico – as well as its US-based ice-protection business and two research projects into oxygen systems.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
