(Adds Development Partners International, Willis Towers WatsonPLC, Elliott Management; Updates Merck, Lordstown Motors Corp,Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund)

Sept 30 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers,acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2000 GMT onThursday:

** Merck & Co MRK.N is buying Acceleron Pharma Inc XLRN.Ofor about $11.5 billion, broadening its portfolio beyond agingcancer drug Keytruda with potential treatments that could bringin fresh revenue. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2QW39D

** Swedish cloud communication services provider Sinch SINCH.ST said it had agreed to buy cloud-based email deliveryplatform Pathwire in a cash-and-stock deal worth about $1.9billion. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2QW1I7

** Albemarle Corp ALB.N said it would buy China-basedGuangxi Tianyuan New Energy Materials Co Ltd, a lithiumconverter, for about $200 million as the company looks toincrease its lithium conversion capacity. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2QW3B2

** U.S. private equity firm Apollo Global Management APO.N said funds managed by its affiliates will buy MitsubishiChemical's 4188.T thermal and emission control protectionmaterials business. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2QW0EB

** Cairo-based financial group EFG Hermes HRHO.CA isnegotiating to buy a stake in privately held Spanish powergeneration company Ignis Energia, Expansion newspaper said. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2QW0BG

** Hedge fund Elliott Management said it owns a"significant" stake in troubled Japanese industrial conglomerateToshiba Corp 6502.T , which is conducting a strategic reviewamid pressure from other investors that could include a sale ofthe company. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2QW3HN

** Private equity firm Development Partners International(DPI) said it has sold about a third of its stake in Africanquick-service restaurant group Food Concepts to African CapitalAlliance (ACA), but will still own a majority of the company. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2QW627

** Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), thecountry's sovereign wealth fund, is considering selling part ofits 70% stake in Saudi Telecom Co (STC) 7010.SE whileretaining majority ownership, the state fund said. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2QW1QD

** Electric vehicle startup Lordstown Motors Corp RIDE.O will announce the sale of the northeast Ohio assembly plant itacquired from General Motors Co GM.N to Taiwan contractmanufacturer Foxconn 2354.TW , a person familiar with thematter said. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2QW1RH

** Activist investors Starboard Value LP and ElliottManagement Corp have taken stakes in insurance broker WillisTowers Watson PLC WLTW.O , the Wall Street Journal reported,citing people familiar with the matter. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2QW43Z

(Compiled by Rajarshi Roy, Tiyashi Datta and Shreyasee Raj inBengaluru) ((tiyashi.datta@thomsonreuters.com;))