ABB sells Lummus to CB&I, reports suspect payments
(Adds detail, background)
ZURICH Aug 27 (Reuters) - Swiss-Swedish engineering company ABB (ABBN.VX) said on Monday it had agreed to sell its Lummus Global business to Chicago Bridge & Iron Company (CB&I) (CBI.N) for an enterprise value of $950 million.
ABB also said it had found "certain suspect payments in a number of countries" in connection with the divestment of Lummus and had reported these to the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
ABB said it was cooperating fully with the authorities and retains liability for potential fines and penalties.
CB&I said it expected the acquisition to close in the fourth quarter of 2007 and to boost 2008 earnings.
ABB, which has recovered from a multi-year restructuring drive, had long been looking to sell the Lummus Global business, the last remaining of a number of units it was aiming to divest after settling huge asbestos claims in previous years.
In July, ABB had said it might have violated anti-bribery laws such as the Foreign Companies practices act and that it had disclosed data to U.S. authorities about suspect payments made by its employees.
(Additional reporting by Douwe Miedema in Zurich and Lewis Krauskopf in New York)
((Reporting by Sam Cage, Editing by Rory Channing;
Email: zurich.newsroom@reuters.com
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