General Electric to Acquire Germany's Concept Laser For $599 Million -- Update

By Sarah Sloat

FRANKFURT--General Electric Co. said on Thursday it would pay $599 million for a 75% stake in Concept Laser GmbH, after its plan to acquire another German 3-D printing company fell through earlier this week.

The deal leaves open the possibility of GE taking full ownership of Concept Laser at a later date.

Concept Laser specializes in metal additive manufacturing, also known as 3-D metal printing. The privately held company has more than 200 employees and its customers are concentrated in the aerospace, medical and dental industries.

The announcement comes a day after GE said its offer to buy Germany's SLM Solutions Group AG fell through, GE having failed to reach the 75% threshold for the deal to go forward. SLM is also active in 3-D printing.

GE has invested roughly $1.5 billion in manufacturing and additive technologies at its global research center and is developing additive applications across businesses, it said. GE plans to "invest significantly" in Concept's Lichtenfels location, which will become a new German center for GE, the company said.

The U.S. industrial giant's offer for SLM fell apart after a fund belonging to Elliott Management Corp. last week said it opposed the deal and held more than 20% of SLM, creating a significant stumbling block.

GE's bid for SLM was part of a planned $1.4 billion push into 3-D printing in Europe. GE also bid about $700 million for Sweden's Arcam AB, another company active in additive-manufacturing technology.

A deal for Arcam also is in jeopardy. Elliott has taken a 10.14% stake in the Swedish company. If Elliott opposes a tie-up, its holdings would make it unlikely GE could meet the threshold of at least 90% of shareholders accepting a deal. Elliott was founded by famed stock picker Paul Singer.

Write to Sarah Sloat at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 27, 2016 02:58 ET (06:58 GMT)

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