General Electric has won approval from US antitrust officials to combine its oil and gas business with Baker Hughes to create the second largest oilfield services company in the world.
GE's settlement with the Justice Department requires it to sell its water and process technologies business, according to a court filing Monday in Washington and reported by Bloomberg.
The new company will be one of the industry’s largest players, bringing together a portfolio of capabilities spanning oilfield services, equipment manufacturing and technology.
GE will own 62.5 percent of the merged entity, which will be publicly traded.
Creating a partnership lets GE deepen its bet on oil and prepare for a possible rebound without absorbing all of Baker Hughes, which was the target in a failed acquisition by Halliburton.
The new company will leapfrog Halliburton to become the world’s second-largest oilfield service-provider and equipment-maker, trailing only Schlumberger.
Jeffery Immelt, GE’s chief executive officer, said last month that the deal will probably close by early July. Baker Hughes has scheduled a special shareholders meeting for June 30 in Houston to seek approval of the tie-up.
