Syngenta-ChemChina deal pushed back to 2017

Syngenta AG said gaining approval for its $43 billion takeover by China National Chemical Corp. will be pushed back to the first quarter of 2017 as the European Union deepens its antitrust review, adding to investor concerns that the deal will face protracted delays.

The Swiss maker of herbicide and pesticides remains confident the acquisition will go ahead as financing is in place and there’s little overlap between the two businesses, Chief Executive Officer Erik Fyrwald said after publishing earnings on Tuesday. Syngenta had previously said the transaction would be completed by the end of this year.

“We are highly confident that our deal will get passed,” the CEO said. “There may be some regulatory remedies, and we are prepared with regulators to resolve that quickly, but there’s nothing to stand in the way of our deal getting done.”

The CEO isn’t aware of ChemChina being in merger talks with Sinochem, he said. A combination of the two Chinese state-owned companies reported this month had been seen as a possible distraction to the Syngenta transaction.

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