The US ambassador to Ireland, Thomas Foley, is to realise almost $40 million (€30.5 million) from the acquisition of the majority of his holding in a power transmission device manufacturer, TB Woods.

The Pennsylvania-headquartered company is being acquired for more than $94 million by a competitor, Altra.

Mr Foley, who is the single largest shareholder in TB Woods, was its chairman until he resigned his position to take up his ambassadorial position in Ireland last October.

He has agreed to sell 1.6 million shares in TB Woods to Altra at $24.80 per share. He holds more than 1.8 million shares in the company, representing more than 45 per cent of its equity.

His holding includes 85,500 shares that have been donated by Mr Foley to the Foley Family Foundation, a charitable trust controlled by the ambassador. The trust's holding is worth more than $2.1 million, based on the acquisition price.

TB Woods was founded in 1857 and employs 800 people, half of them in the United States. As chairman, Mr Foley received remuneration of $711,000 in 2006 from the company.

Mr Foley has been a major supporter of US president Bush, having helped to raise more than $100,000 in funds for his 2000 electoral campaign. He also attended Harvard Business School with president Bush.

Prior to taking up his position as ambassador to Ireland, Mr Foley served as director of private sector development for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, where he oversaw the country's state-owned companies. In 2004, he received a distinguished public service award from the US department of defence.