ABB and Thomas & Betts Corp. have announced that the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has cleared ABB's proposed acquisition of Thomas & Betts.
At a meeting scheduled for May 2, Thomas & Betts shareholders will vote on the approval of the merger agreement, pursuant to which ABB will acquire Thomas & Betts for $72 per share in cash.
The clearance by the U.S. DOJ satisfies one of the conditions of the acquisition's completion. The transaction was already cleared by the Turkish antitrust authority. The closing of the acquisition remains subject to clearance by the European Commission and the Canadian antitrust authorities, as well as to the other closing conditions set forth in the merger agreement.
While a definitive closing date cannot yet be determined, ABB and Thomas & Betts continue to expect that the transaction will close around mid-year.
