The announcement comes as Halliburton and Baker Hughes seek buyers for as much as US$10 billion in assets prior to their merger to avoid antitrust concerns. The asset-divestiture strategy includes the Baker Hughes cementing division and the companies' combined completion-tools lines in addition to Halliburton's drill bit, directional drilling and LWD/MWD business divisions. The divestitures are a step toward winning approval from the US Justice Department for the $34.6 billion merger. Combined, Halliburton and Baker Hughes, which are currently the second- and third-largest oilfield service companies, respectively, plan to leverage the combined entity to compete against industry-giant Schlumberger.