FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Chinese investor Creat Group Corp has withdrawn and will rework its application for U.S. approval of a planned takeover of Biotest amid concerns over national security, the German blood plasma products maker said, sending its shares sharply lower.
Biotest, whose products are used to treat blood coagulation disorders, auto-immune diseases and immune deficiencies, agreed in April to be taken over by Creat in a 1.3-billion-euro ($1.51-billion) cash deal.
It said on Tuesday, however, that the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) had national security concerns about the transaction that could not be eased under the planned deal structure.
It did not provide details on what those concerns were.
U.S. concerns over sensitive technology falling into Chinese hands have scuppered several deals over the past couple of years, including the $2.8 billion sale of Philips' components lighting division Lumileds and a takeover of German chip equipment maker Aixtron.
CFIUS this year also blocked German chipmaker Infineon's attempts to buy Wolfspeed Power, a unit of U.S. LED lighting maker Cree.
Creat and Biotest plan to file a new application with CFIUS with a request for an expedited review, Biotest said on Tuesday, but added there was no guarantee that a second attempt would be successful.
"Creat Group Corporation confirmed its further support for Biotest and its continuing interest in a takeover of the shares in the company," Biotest said on Tuesday.
Shares in Biotest fell as much as 12 percent to a seven-month low of 17.90 euros. They already lost more than 12 percent of their value last week due to a media report on CFIUS concerns.
($1 = 0.8624 euros)
(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Ludwig Burger and Louise Heavens)
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