Trelleborg: No reason Yokohama deal shouldn’t be approved

Following the news that the UK Competitions and Market Authority (CMA) has opened an investigation into Yokohama’s acquisition of Trelleborg Wheel Systems (TWS), Trelleborg representatives have clarified that – in their view – “…there are no reasons why this deal should not be approved.”

In answer to Tyres & Accessories’ questions on the matter, a spokesperson for TWS’s Swedish parent company, Trelleborg AB, confirmed the details and stated:

“This is normal procedure. The buyer (in this case Yokohama) files and then the authorities start their reviews. Normal procedure and exactly the same as any other process of this type.”

EU and UK markets still to grant approval

In addition, Trelleborg officials pointed out that merger clearances have already been obtained in 70 countries. Those include “large markets like the US”. However, “a few are remaining, such as the EU and the UK” – something that could explain why, in January, Yokohama pushed back the date it expected to complete the TWS acquisition to “in the first half of 2023” rather than second half of 2022.

Indeed, the fact that the UK approval process is now underway represents progress towards the goal of completing the acquisition, with the CMA announcement meaning that the UK has now started “this last phase of the process”. And the same procedure is “now also starting in the EU”, according to Trelleborg representatives, who concluded:

“Our joint assessment with Yokohama, as communicated many times before, is that there are no reasons why this deal should not be approved.”