Following renewed talks with the EU Commission, the Schaeffler Group expects to submit the final draft of its antitrust clearance application (relating to its Continental AG purchase) sometime his week.

The statement from Schaeffler’s Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany, headquarters could be seen as the company’s answer to reports that investors are concerned about the speed of Schaeffler’s application to the EU. Forty-eight hours earlier, the Financial Times reported hedge funds associated with Schaeffler's takeover of Continental are “becoming increasingly nervous about the potential 12 billion (£9.4 billion) deal closing.”

Schaeffler’s statement says the group believes it is in the best interests of both companies to achieve “a rapid conclusion of the process by preparing the notification in the best possible manner.”

Explaining the delay of the group’s submission to the EU, the statement added: “…the EU Commission asked Schaeffler to specify the worldwide potential relations between products in neighboring markets and corroborate this statement with financial figures. Since corresponding information is not centrally available at Continental AG, the compilation of such information is a time-consuming procedure.”

The Schaeffler Group submitted the initial draft of a notification (Form CO) to the EU Commission on Aug. 22. Based on the investor agreement concluded with Continental AG, the EU Commission requested that this notification be revised and all information concerning Continental AG be based on current Continental AG figures instead of Schaeffler estimates. (Courtesy of Tire Review/Tyres & Accessories)