Merck KGaA to Acquire Sigma-Aldrich for Approx. $17 billion (€13.1 billion)

Merck KGaA (Darmstadt, Germany) has announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Sigma-Aldrich (Kansas City, Missouri, USA) for approximately $17 billion (€13.1 billion). As a result of the acquisition, the Life Science contribution to Merck KGaA’s earnings will more than double, and will expand the company’s reach in North America.

Merck KGaA report that the Sigma-Aldrich Board of Directors has unanimously approved the transaction, and a merger agreement will be presented to Sigma-Aldrich shareholders for approval. Closing is expected in mid-2015, subject to regulatory approvals and other conditions.

Karl-Ludwig Kley, chairman of Merck KGaA’s Executive Board, commented that the two companies fit perfectly together and will be able to offer a much broader range of products to their customers in research, pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical manufacturing, and diagnostic and testing laboratories. “The combination of Merck and Sigma-Aldrich will secure stable growth and profitability in an industry that is driven by trends such as the globalization of research and manufacturing,” he said.

Rakesh Sachdev, president and chief executive officer of Sigma-Aldrich, touted the acquisition as a testament to the Sigma-Aldrich brand and the accomplishments of the company’s 9000 employees worldwide. “This transaction is a clear validation of our success in transforming Sigma-Aldrich into a customer-focused and solutions-oriented global organization,” he said.

The life sciences division of Merck KGaA is known as EMD Millipore in the United States and as Merck Millpore in the rest of the world.