EU approves BP, DuPont takeover

The European Union antitrust regulators clear have cleared the joint takeover of Birtish oil leader BP P.L.C. and U.S. chemicals manufacturer DuPont of U.S. company Biobutanol LLC. In a statement released by the European Commission, which is in-charge of overseeing both mergers and takeovers in the 27 countries within the European Union, the EU said that the deal will not lead to overlap between the parent companies’ activities since both are currently inactive in any butanol-related production technology licensing. The said joint venture plans to further develop and commercialize the production technology for biobutanol, an advanced biofuel with higher energy content than ethanol produced through biomass fermentation. (July 8, 2009)