Plant quiet on takeover rumours

MANAGEMENT at the Clonmel-based Guidant Ireland is remaining tight-lipped on reports from the US that healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson is to complete a $24 billion takeover of the worldwide Guidant Corporation.

“It has always been the company’s global policy not to comment on rumours,” said a spokesman for the plant said.

The New York Times reported on Wednesday that Johnson & Johnson is in “advanced negotiation” with Guidant Corporation, headquartered in Indianapolis, for a takeover of the company, a world leader in the manufacture of heart defibrillator pacemakers.