Praxair sells European assets to Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation

The divested businesses generated annual sales of approximately 1.3 billion euros in 2017. The purchase price for this transaction is 5.0 billion euros in cash consideration and is subject to customary adjustments at closing. The assets to be sold include Praxair’s industrial gases businesses in Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom and include approximately 2,500 employees. “We are taking a constructive approach to address regulatory concerns with the merger in the European Economic Area,” said Steve Angel, Praxair chairman and chief executive officer. “Taiyo Nippon Sanso is a strong and capable global industrial gas buyer for our assets and we are pleased that they will continue to serve the needs of our customers in Europe.” Praxair will continue to own, operate and maintain these businesses until the closing of the merger and this European divestiture transaction.