BRUSSELS (Reuters) - German drugmaker Boehringer Ingelheim won EU antitrust approval on Wednesday to acquire French peer Sanofi's (PA:SASY) Merial animal health business after agreeing to sell some of Merial's vaccines and pharmaceuticals to allay competition concerns.
The companies unveiled a $20 billion (16.07 billion pound) asset swap in December last year, under which Sanofi would buy Boehringer's consumer health division, and the German firm purchase Merial.
The European Commission said the concessions from Boehringer allayed worries that the deal would harm competition and possibly result in price hikes.
"The two companies offered to divest a number of Merial's marketed and pipeline products, including its existing vaccines Circovac, Progressis, Parvovax, Parvovurax and Mucossifa and pharmaceuticals Ketofen, Wellicox, Allevinix, Genixine, Equioxx Injectable and Equioxx Paste," the EU enforcer said.
It said Boehringer and Merial would also provide technical support and a transitional supply agreement to the purchaser.