EU antitrust regulators drop probe after Kingspan ditches Slovenian bid

By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators on Friday dropped their year-long investigation into Kingspan's proposed acquisition of Slovenian rival Trimo after the Irish insulation maker abandoned its bid.

The European Commission had previously said the deal, announced two years ago, could significantly reduce competition for mineral fibre sandwich panels in the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia and the UK, as both companies are direct rivals.

Kingspan and Trimo are both leading companies in the market for mineral fibre sandwich panels, which are used for the construction, renovation and insulation of a variety of industrial and commercial buildings.

The EU competition watchdog was poised to block the deal after Kingspan failed to address its concerns, a source familiar with the matter said. The company never offered remedies, according to the Commission website.

The Commission said it took note of Kingspan's decision to end its agreement with Trimo parent European Architectural

Systems.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Sandra Maler)