BP Wins Approval For $3Bn Veba Acquisition

BP has won approval from the European Commission to purchase a 49 percent stake in the Veba Oel joint venture from its partner in Veba Oel E.ON for 3.3 billion euros. "The Commission concluded that the change from joint to sole control does not give rise to competition concerns," the Commission said in a statement. E.ON Chief Executive Ulrich Hartmann said in a speech to shareholders at the company's annual meeting in Essen in May the company would exercise its put option to sell its remaining stake effective July 1. "We will then collect the agreed purchase price of 2.8 billion plus a purchase price adjustment of approximately 500 million," he said. The additional 500 million euros was agreed by E.ON and BP after they sold Veba Oel's upstream business to PetroCanada.

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&to=http://www.bp.kz/index.asp' target=_blank>BP

&to=http://www.eon.com/' target=_blank>E.ON

&to=http://www.petro-canada.ca/eng/' target=_blank>PetroCanada