Siemens Healthineers to buy cancer specialist Varian

Siemens Healthineers on Sunday said it planned to push ahead with the purchase of Varian after the US firm's board approved the plan.

The $16.4 billion ($14.9 billion) deal would bring together two companies that have already been working together for more than a decade in the field of oncology.

Bavaria-based Siemens Healthineers, which came into being in 2018, is a mother company for several medical technology firms. It offers new diagnostic products, including tests for the novel coronavirus as well as X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging machines.

Varian, meanwhile, specializes in cancer care products such as radiotherapy equipment.

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Both firms said they believed the deal would bring together complementary specialisms in the detection of disease and its treatment.

"With this combination of two leading companies we make two leaps in one step: A leap in the fight against cancer and a leap in our overall impact on healthcare," said Healthineers CEO Bernd Montag. "This decisive moment in the history of our companies means more hope and less uncertainty for patients."

Varian, based in Palo Alto, California, is expected to carry on operating under its current name.

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"We are thrilled to partner with Siemens Healthineers to extend our renowned customer care, serving clinicians and patients from the very first stage in the fight against cancer," said Varian CEO Dow Wilson.

The deal is to be financed by Siemens yielding part of its stake in Healthineers to bring in new capital, as well as through loans. That would see the Siemens group's stake in the Heathineers — which employs about 50,000 people in more than 70 countries — fall from 85% to 72%.