The European Commission has given the green light to U.S. private equity firm Carlyle for the acquisition of a majority stake in chemical giant BASF's coatings business, subject to certain conditions. The Brussels-based authority announced on Tuesday that approval is contingent upon the divestment of Nouryon's global polysulfide business to a suitable buyer. BASF had announced the sale of the division in October, with the transaction valuing the business at an enterprise value of 7.7 billion euros. According to previous disclosures, the Ludwigshafen-based group will retain a 40 percent stake in the new entity, in which the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is also participating as a co-investor. The closing of the transaction had been expected during the current second quarter.

(Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Scot W. Stevenson. For inquiries, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and economics) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for corporate and markets).)