The European Union has again delayed a ruling regarding Bayer’s planned takeover of Monsanto.
Earlier this week, EU Commission antitrust investigators extended their investigation by five working days until March 12th, according to Reuters.
The ongoing proceedings would have given Bayer until midnight on Monday to offer further concessions to EU regulators or request another extension of up to 10 working days. The EU did not state a reason for the delay to deliver its verdict on the merger, and a Bayer spokesman declined to comment.
The transaction would make Bayer the largest supplier of seeds and crop chemicals, surpassing ChemChina’s Syngenta, DowDuPont and BASF.
Late last year, the EU Commission granted Bayer more time to provide information, which pushed the deadline for the EU to decide over the deal back to March 5th from late January.
Bayer had initially hoped to wrap up the deal by the end of 2017.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.