Boehringer to divest US assets to win approval for Sanofi deal

German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim has agreed to divest key animal health assets in to garner regulatory approval for a multi-billion dollar deal with Sanofi, US antitrust regulators announced Wednesday.

Boehringer Ingelheim plans to acquire Paris-based Sanofi's animal care subsidiary, Merial, which is valued at $13.5 billion in the asset-swap transaction announced in December 2015.

In exchange, Sanofi would buy Boehringer Ingelheim's consumer health business, valued at $8 billion, as well as obtain cash compensation for $5.5 billion.

The US Federal Trade Commission is requiring Boehringer Ingelheim to sell its pet vaccine business to Eli Lilly and parasite control and some other animal health assets to Bayer.

The agency the deal would have damaged competition in the US market for canine vaccines, feline vaccines and products to prevent and control outbreaks in cattle and sheep.

The agency will decide whether to finalize the settlement after a 30-day public comment period, which closes January 27.

The European Commission in August approved the transaction after requiring the two companies to offload businesses in a number of countries, mostly in Eastern Europe, to stop the merger from reducing choice for customers.