INDUSTRIAL gases group BOC yesterday became the latest manufacturer to fall into foreign hands after accepting an £8.2bn bid from a German group.

The FTSE 100-listed company, which has a base on Teesside, has agreed to join forces with Linde to create the world's biggest industrial gases supplier, after receiving a £16-a-share offer.

The bid represented an improvement on the £15-a-share proposal that Linde tabled in January, which was rejected by BOC as too low.

BOC, which began in 1886 when brothers Arthur and Leon Brin set up Brin's Oxygen Company, employs 30,000 people and serves two million customers in more than 50 countries.

It generated sales of £4.6bn and underlying profits of £564.2m in the past financial year.

Last night, Dr Stan Higgins, chief executive of the North-East Process Industry Cluster, which represents chemical companies in the region, said it was too early to say what affect, if any, BOC's takeover would have on its Teesside operations.

But he said BOC operations on Teesside, which have been the subject of significant investment in recent years, would present new business opportunities for Linde.

The Transport and General Workers' Union (T&G), which has thousands of members at BOC, said it wanted assurances from Linde about continued investment, the pension scheme and safety.

Peter Booth, T&G national organiser for manufacturing, noted that Linde was smaller than BOC and believed the takeover raised questions about the weaknesses of UK companies.

He said: ''If anything, we would have expected the larger BOC to take over Linde.

''This does raise questions about how, in our free market, free-for-all economy, strategic and well-run businesses can be taken over in this way, especially as we have seen a more robust line recently, in France, for example.

''It is this UK business weakness which has implications for the future of our economy.''

Wolfgang Reitzle, chief executive of Linde, said the benefits of a tie-up with BOC included the ability to offer customers a wider range of products and services.

The combined group will have annual sales of about £8.16bn, with the regional strength of BOC in Asia complementing the presence of Linde in Europe and South America.

The recommended takeover comes hot on the heels of other major deals for UK companies, including the £2.2bn acquisition of glass maker Pilkington and the £17.7bn purchase of mobile phone operator O2.

P&O has been swallowed up by an overseas company, while airports operator BAA is a bid target.