EUROPE – The purchase of French air conditioning manufacturer CIAT by Carriers’ parent company, UTC, looks set to be completed following its approval by the European Commission.

The take-over, first announced at the end of July, was today approved under the EU Merger Regulation.

In a statement, the Commission said its investigation had revealed that concerns about competition were baseless “as the market share increases in most cases remain modest and customers will continue to have an adequate number of alternative suppliers in all markets.”

CIAT generated a turnover of €256m in 2013, 54% of which came from exports. The company has 1,000 employees based outside France and boasts subsidiaries and approved distributors in over 70 countries.

Carrier’s main European factory is located in Montluel, on the outskirts of Lyon, and is a mere 80km from CIAT’s plant in Culoz.

The two brands in fact represent a truly mutually beneficial industrial synergy as the various Carrier ranges are world leaders in air conditioning and commercial refrigeration while CIAT specializes in air conditioning and ventilation of office buildings. This mutually beneficial synergy is also geographical, as Carrier is very active in northern Europe while CIAT is more heavily implanted in the south of Europe.