{"id":35867,"date":"2022-12-19T21:56:50","date_gmt":"2022-12-19T21:56:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/uncategorized\/2022\/12\/19\/experts-forecast-smooth-path-for-l3harris-aerojet-acquisition\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T00:45:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T00:45:31","slug":"experts-forecast-smooth-path-for-l3harris-aerojet-acquisition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/space\/2022\/12\/19\/experts-forecast-smooth-path-for-l3harris-aerojet-acquisition\/","title":{"rendered":"Experts forecast smooth path for L3Harris-Aerojet acquisition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2015 Though regulators sought to block<\/a> Lockheed Martin\u2019s bid to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne last year, they are far more likely to let the propulsion firm\u2019s proposed deal with prime contractor L3Harris Technologies<\/a> go through, experts said Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deal, if approved, would see the country\u2019s only independent solid rocket motor maker bought by the sixth-largest American defense firm, L3Harris, in a deal valued at $4.7 billion. Pending government approvals, the deal is expected to close in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission<\/a> filed a lawsuit in January to block Lockheed\u2019s $4.4 billion takeover of Aerojet because the FTC opposed the prospect of the vertical consolidation. But the newly proposed combination would be horizontal, with no material competitive overlaps, according to former deputy undersecretary of defense for industrial affairs Jeff Bialos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis will have a considerably easier time than the Lockheed-Aerojet deal,\u201d said Bialos, now co-chair of global law firm Eversheds-Sutherland\u2019s aerospace, defense and security group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though Lockheed said it would have allowed Aerojet to continue as a merchant supplier of propulsion equipment to the entire industry, the FTC\u2019s complaint against the deal alleged Lockheed had previously tried to sway Aerojet against selling its wares to rival firms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bialos, who has previously represented both L3Harris and Aerojet, said L3Harris should be helped by its track record as a merchant supplier of various technologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt remains to be seen whether the regulatory agencies would give much cognizance to that, but I think the Defense Department would take that seriously because the history is there,\u201d Bialos said. \u201cAccording to the FTC, there was no merchant supplier mentality at Lockheed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

L3Harris is banking that regulators will approve the deal, according to the public terms. If the government is not satisfied by the deal and it\u2019s scuttled, L3Harris would have to pay Aerojet a $406 million \u201creverse-breakup\u201d fee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are making a bet,\u201d Bialos said of L3Harris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two companies, in their announcement, say the deal offers the country a \u201cstrengthened merchant supplier.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve heard the Defense Department leadership loud and clear: they want high-quality, innovative and cost-effective solutions to meet both current and emerging threats, and they\u2019re relying upon a strong, competitive industrial base to deliver those solutions,\u201d L3Harris Chairman and CEO Chris Kubasik said in the statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\t