Court approves Bemis’s $1.2B acquisition of Rio Tinto’s Alcan packaging unit, after settlement

Court: Packager Bemis can buy Alcan from Rio Tinto

NEENAH, Wis. — Flexible packaging maker Bemis Co. has received court approval for its acquisition of the Alcan packaging business it plans to buy from mining conglomerate Rio Tinto PLC for about $1.2 billion.

The U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia approved the acquisition, Bemis said Thursday. Bemis expects the deal to close as soon as possible.

Bemis and the Department of Justice filed a settlement agreement with the court this week to satisfy concerns that the acquisition would hurt the market for flexible packaging.

Under the pact, Bemis will sell certain U.S. assets that generate yearly revenue of about $100 million, including two factories.

Without that sale, the Justice Department said in a statement Wednesday, the acquisition would have combined two of the biggest makers of flexible packaging for cheese and shrink wrap bags for fresh meat in the U.S. The market for flexible packaging is highly concentrated, according to the justice statement.

Bemis also must sell Alcan’s contracts and intellectual property, factories in Catoosa, Okla., and Menasha, Wis., and other assets related to the packaging business.

Mining conglomerate Rio Tinto, Alcan’s parent, is based in the U.K.

Bemis is based in Neenah, Wis. Its shares fell 23 cents to $29.27 on Friday.