Ruhrgas Industries GmbH, Essen, Germany, acquired the electricity and water metering business of ABB Handels- und Verwaltungs-AG in Zurich in an acquisition of approximately US$244 million. ABB Metering operates in 28 countries and has a workforce of approximately 3,800 worldwide. Two-thirds of these employees work at the major production sites in Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, the U.S., Brazil and Argentina. The Ruhrgas Industries Group concentrates on two fields of business: gas measurement control (Kromschroder, AMCo, Elster and Instromet) and industrial furnaces (LOI and Ipsen). The ABB acquisition is still subject to approval by the cartel authorities.