DoJ Asks To Divest Faiveley US Freight Car Brakes Unit Before Wabtec Acquisition

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Department of Justice announced that it will require Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp. (WAB) to divest Faiveley Transport North America's entire U.S. freight car brakes business in order for Wabtec to proceed with its proposed approximately $1.8 billion acquisition of Faiveley Transport S.A. and Faiveley Transport North America.

The Justice Department's Antitrust Division filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed transaction.  At the same time, the department filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the department's competitive concerns.

The proposed settlement includes a divestiture of Faiveley's entire U.S. freight car brakes business which develops, manufactures and sells freight car brake systems and components including: air brake control valves, hand brakes, slack adjusters, truck-mounted brake assemblies, empty load devices and brake cylinders. The divestiture also includes Faiveley's FTEN control valve, a freight car brake control valve under development that will be available for full commercialization after approval from the Association of American Railroads.