UK regulators have granted the final regulatory approval for the $7.8bn merger between SLB and ChampionX.
The deal is to proceed after initial concerns about market competition were addressed through divestitures, according to the UK Competition & Markets Authority (CMA).
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SLB had signed a definitive agreement to acquire ChampionX in April 2024.
The CMA had expressed apprehensions about the merger’s potential to create a monopoly in the market.
The authority’s concerns were first made public in January 2025, highlighting the merger’s possible impact on the supply of production chemical technologies and drilling services.
By March, the agency had specifically pointed out the risks of reduced competition due to the merger.
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By GlobalDataTo mitigate these issues, SLB and ChampionX agreed to divest their UK production chemical technologies business and ChampionX’s interests in US Synthetic in April.
Additionally, SLB committed to licensing its quartz sensors and transducers technology to competitors.
The CMA has confirmed that these divestitures effectively resolve the competitive overlap in the UK market and the vertical concerns related to ChampionX’s polycrystalline diamond bearings and SLB’s directional drilling operations.
The agency said: “Having considered third-party responses to the consultation, and having assessed all the evidence in the round, the CMA remains of the view that the UILs [undertakings in lieu of reference] offered by the parties are clear-cut and appropriate to remedy, mitigate or prevent the competition concerns identified in the SLC [substantial lessening of competition] decision.”
The companies are now set to finalise their merger this week.
The Norwegian Competition Authority (NCA) also had reservations about the merger earlier in the year. Nevertheless, the NCA approved the merger in April, following the planned sale of US Synthetic.
