THE £404 million takeover of Sussex-based Eurotherm has been given the go-ahead.

European Union competition officials have decided not to block engineering giant Siebe's agreed bid for electronic components manufacturers Eurotherm, based at Lower Beeding, near Horsham. The news came as the company announced it now has the backing of nearly 85 per cent of Eurotherm's shares, meaning the offer has become unconditional. Siebe said it was "very pleased" that the EU had given its approval to the deal, which will make it the world's biggest maker of temperature control systems. Aspokesman for the company said it was a "very well-run business which we want to grow organically". Asked about whether there were any plans to trim the workforce, he replied: "We never speculate on job implications". However, last week Siebe chief executive Allen Yurko warned that the company, which currently has a workforce of 55,000, would have to make global cuts of around 4,000 because of tougher economic conditions.

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