Tim Ripley/DUBAI
British Aerospace and Marconi Electronic Systems executives will be holding their breath over the next two weeks as their "mega merger" awaits US government approval.
Marconi chief Sir Charles Masefield says in Dubai that there is still no news from the US on the approval in spite of press reports over the weekend.
These were the result of confusion about comments made by BAe chief executive John Weston at a lunch last Thursday in London.
Regulatory approval by the US Justice Department is the final hurdle in the multi-million-dollar merger between the two giant UK defence companies.
Early last week the BAe shareholders gave the deal a 99.9% thumps-up at an extraordinary meeting in London. This follows approval by MES's parent, the General Electric Company.
Indications
"We hope to be trading as the new company around 30 November," says Mike Peters, BAe's head of media relations. "The indications are it is moving favourably in America but we know nothing is certain."
"We have supplied the US authorities with all the information they asked for."
"We have had to ask for US approval because the combined company will have 17,000 employees in companies we own in the United States."
"They have asked about programmes like the Joint Strike Fighter and Tracer where BAe and MES are on competing teams." If they ask for Chinese Walls' to be built between programmes we will build them."
Peters, however, stresses that a "No" by the US authorities was not be a "show-stopper" for the merger. He declines comment on what options could be taken in the event of a US veto but industry analysts say the two British companies might dispose of American interests to get around the problem.
Organisation
The approval by the BAe shareholders follows on the heels of an announcement on the proposed organisation of the new company.
This creates 11 programme-specific groups, each with its own managing director. Sir Dick Evans remains chairman and Weston continues as chief executive. MES's Masefield is to be group marketing director.
Speculation continues about the name of the merged company, with UK press reports suggesting that it has been decided simply to continue operating as BAe. Peters comments that "we have no plans to make great new name changes."
Reports at Dubai yesterday that "BAe Systems" had been selected as the new name are described as "premature" by senior company sources, who say this is probably "only a holding name".
Source: Flight Daily News
