Russia's Anti-Monopoly Service gave final approval to a three-way merger that would create the world's biggest aluminium producer, the companies involved in the deal said on Wednesday, Feb. 14.

At the start of the month EU regulators also cleared the deal, which will see Russia's biggest aluminium producer, Rusal, absorb rival SUAL and the alumina assets of Swiss-based commodities trader Glencore.

The Federal Anti-Monopoly Service agreed to the merger in principle in January, and analysts had predicted that the Russian approval would be a formality.
"Today's announcement ... is of great significance, supporting the creation of Russia's first transnational corporation and the new leader of the global aluminium industry," Rusal CEO Alexander Bulygin said in a statement released jointly with the other two companies. "We are now ready to round off the merger and plan to close the deal in the near future," he was quoted by the Associated Press as saying.

The company had said earlier that it expected the deal to close in April. Approval for the tie-up had also been granted by the anti-monopoly authorities of Ukraine, Montenegro and Turkey, the statement said. Bulgarian regulators must still give their approval for the merger.

The European Commission had said the deal would not significantly impede competition in Europe because the new company would continue to face "effective" rivalry.