The European Commission has approved Northrop Grumman’s [NOC] pending $7.8 billion acquisition of Orbital ATK [OA], moving the deal one step closer to completion.
Northrop Grumman said it is still awaiting the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to complete its review of the deal, which was announced last September. The company expects the acquisition to close in the first half of 2018.
Orbital ATK’s shareholders voted in favor of the acquisition last November.
The acquisition will significantly enhance Northrop Grumman’s capabilities in missile defense solutions and is also expected to help the company in the area of satellites. Orbital ATK will also give Northrop Grumman capabilities in launch vehicles and propulsion systems, and in missiles and munitions.
Orbital ATK is the Pentagon’s prime contractor for maintaining the solid- and liquid-fueled rocket motors on the Minuteman 3 ICBM under a contract worth nearly $800 million when it was awarded in 2015. The company also provides solid rocket motors for the Navy’s Trident 2 submarine-launched nuclear missiles under a subcontract to Lockheed Martin.
For the Energy Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Orbital ATK is part of Consolidated Nuclear Security: the management team for the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee and the Pantex Plant in Texas.
