Baker Hughes talks don’t include ‘outright purchase,’ GE says

HOUSTON (Bloomberg) -- General Electric is in discussion with Baker Hughes on potential partnerships and the talks don’t include a full acquisition, a spokeswoman for the industrial behemoth said.

GE was said to be in talks to buy the world’s third-largest oil services provider, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Melanie Kania, a spokeswoman for Baker Hughes, declined to comment on the report.

“We are in discussion with Baker Hughes on potential partnerships," GE spokeswoman Deirdre Latour said in an emailed statement. “While nothing is concluded, none of these options include an outright purchase.’’

Baker Hughes jumped as much as 19% in after-hours trading in New York following the report and was 6.3% higher at 7:35 p.m. in New York. The Houston-based company terminated plans to be acquired by Halliburton earlier this year after failing to gather antitrust approval from regulators around the world.

Kania did not immediately return phone and email messages left after hours seeking comment on GE’s statement.