Breedon Aggregates' acquisition of Hope Construction Materials looks set to go ahead after the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) indicated a proposed sale of 14 ready-mix (RMX) sites 'might be accepted' by the authority.

The £336 million merger-deal was thrown into doubt after the CMA raised competition concerns.

The move would result in the merged business operating 200 RMX concrete production sites across England, Wales and Scotland.

An investigation by the competition watchdog raised concerns in relation to 27 of the RMX sites, however it ruled out any concerns over the production and supply of aggregates or cement.

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Breedon has now offered to sell 14 of the sites in order to avoid a full CMA investigation.

As a result, the CMA said it has decided that 'there are reasonable grounds for believing that the undertakings offered by Breedon, or a modified version of them, might be accepted by the CMA'.

The authority now has until 23 June to consider whether to accept Breedon's offer, or a modified version of it.

However this deadline might be extended to 25 August if there are special reasons for doing so.

Commenting on the news, Breedon said: "The Company fully expects to be able to finalise the required undertakings to the CMA's satisfaction and complete the required divestments in the near future, paving the way for completion of the acquisition later this summer."

(LM/MH)