Tronox Ltd. is moving ahead with its planned $1.7 billion acquisition of the titanium dioxide business of Saudi company Cristal, after a waiting period under federal antitrust law expired without further action or communication from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
Tronox, a Stamford company involved in the mining, production and marketing of inorganic minerals and chemicals, first announced the deal in February.
“Based on consultation with counsel, we believe that expiration of the waiting period means that we can proceed toward completion of the transaction once all closing conditions are met,” said Tronox CEO Jeffry Quinn, who was named to that position last month.
“However,” he added, “we have not been informed that the Federal Trade Commission has formally concluded its investigation. The commission could conceivably seek to enjoin the transaction at a later time, but we believe such action would be unprecedented and contrary to the rationale of the pre-merger notification system that is the framework of the U.S. regulatory process.”
Tronox intends to complete the transaction following the satisfaction of all remaining conditions to the acquisition, including antitrust clearance by the European Commission and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
