BRUSSELS, Sept 7 (Reuters) - The following are planned
mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief
guide to the EU merger process:
APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS:
-- Russian steel producer Severstal <CHMF.MM> to acquire
counterpart Holding Gonvarri Russia SL, belonging to the Spanish
steel and motor vehicles parts group Gonvarri Corporacion
Financiera SL (approved Sept. 7)
-- British private equity firm Lion Capital LLP and U.S.
alcoholic beverages maker and distributor Central European
Distribution Corp to acquire joint control of Russian vodka and
alcoholic drinks maker and distributor CJSC Russian Alcohol
Group (approved Sept. 7)
NEW LISTINGS:
-- Czech energy firm International Power Opatovice a.s.,
controlled by Britain's International Power Plc <IPR.L>; the
City of Prague; and German energy group EnBW <EBKG.DE>, which is
jointly controlled by French and German energy firms Electricite
de France <EDF.PA> and Zweckverband Oberschwaebische
Elektrizitaetswerke, take joint control of Czech energy provider
Prazska Teplarenska a.s. (notified Sept. 1/deadline Oct. 6)
EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES:
None
FIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE:
SEPT 8
-- German media group Bertelsmann AG <BTGGg.F> and U.S.
private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co LP []
take joint control of Newco to manage music rights (notified
Aug. 4/deadline Sept. 8)
-- French banking services provider Banque Federative du
Credit Mutuel [] to acquire French online retail banking
and insurance company Monabanq (notified Aug. 4/deadline Sept.
8)
SEPT 11
-- Italian oil and natural gas company Eni SpA <EN.MI> to
acquire sole control of Tuscany-based supplier of natural gas
Toscana Energia Clienti SpA, jointly controlled by Eni and
Toscana Energia (notified Aug. 7/deadline Sept. 11/simplified)
SEPT 15
-- French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis <SASY.PA> to acquire U.S.
animal pharmaceuticals and vaccines company Merial (notified
Aug. 11/deadline Sept. 15/simplified)
-- Japanese electronic products company Panasonic Corp
<6752.T> to acquire Japanese counterpart Sanyo <6764.T>
(notified Aug. 11/deadline Sept. 15)
SEPT 16
-- Danish natural gas firm Dong Naturgas AS, controlled by
Danish energy company Dong Energy AS [], to acquire
German energy supplier Kom-Strom AG (notified Aug. 12/deadline
Sept. 16)
SEPT 17
-- Spanish roads and railways construction company Dragados,
belonging to Spain's ACS Group <ACS.MC>, to acquire Polish
construction services company Pol-Aqua Group <PQAA.WA> (notified
Aug. 18/deadline Sept. 17/simplified)
SEPT 22
-- Japanese consumer electronics maker Sony Corp <6758.T> to
acquire control of the small- to mid-size TFT-LCD display
business of Japanese maker of printers and LCD panels Seiko
Epson Corp <6724.T> by purchasing shares (notified Aug.
21/deadline Sept. 22)
-- Bermuda-based reinsurer PartnerRe Ltd <PRE.N> to acquire
sole control of French-listed Paris Re Holdings Ltd <PRI.PA> by
buying shares (notified Aug. 21/deadline Sept. 22/simplified)
-- Swiss drugmaker Novartis <NOVN.VX> to acquire Austrian
company Ebewe SP Group by buying shares (notified Aug.
21/deadline Sept. 22)
-- U.S. publicly traded company active in management and
services BlackRock <BLK.N> to acquire British global asset
management products and services company Barclays Global
Investors (notified Aug. 18/deadline Sept. 22)
SEPT 25
-- German engineering group Robert Bosch [] to
acquire German aloe products and silicon-based solar modules
company aloe solar and German thin-film solar modules company
Johanna Solar Technology (notified Aug. 21/deadline Sept.
25/simplified)
SEPT 29
-- Greek Piraeus Bank <BOPr.AT> and French bank BNP Paribas
<BNPP.PA> acquire joint control of Greek wealth management
undertaking Piraeus Wealth Management AEPEY and Swiss wealth
management services undertaking Piraeus Wealth Management
(Switzerland) SA (notified Aug. 25/deadline Sept. 29/simplified)
-- French financial services firm Predica, owned by Credit
Agricole <CAGR.PA>, to acquire together with French real estate
management company SFL, which is already jointly controlling
French real estate company Parholding, joint control over the
latter by way of purchase of shares currently owned by IDF
(notified Aug. 25/deadline Sept. 29/simplified)
SEPT 30
-- British investment fund RREEF Fund, ultimately managed by
Germany's Deutsche Bank <DBKGn.DE>, and Spanish Union Fenosa Gas
to acquire joint control of Spanish liquid natural gas
regasification company SAGGAS (notified Aug. 26/deadline Sept.
30)
-- German mail delivery firm TNT Deutschland, belonging to
the Dutch group TNT NV <TNT.AS>, and German publishing,
electronic media and mail delivery company Holtzbrinck acquire a
number of joint ventures registered in Germany and active in
regional mail delivery (notified Aug. 26/deadline Sept.
30/simplified)
OCT 1
-- U.S. private equity investment company MD Investors Corp,
indirectly controlled solely by U.S. Carlyle Group [], to
acquire parts of U.S. metal components manufacturer Metaldyne
Corp [] (notified Aug. 27/deadline Oct. 1/simplified)
OCT 2
-- South African foodservice products firm Bidvest <BVTJ.J>
to acquire Czech/Polish counterpart Nowaco Group (notified Aug.
28/deadline Oct. 2/simplified)
OCT 6
-- U.S. auto maker General Motors [] to acquire parts
of U.S. automotive components firm Delphi <DPHIQ.PK> (notified
Sept. 1/deadline Oct. 6)
-- Test Tasit, a newly incorporated company ultimately
controlled solely by British private equity investor Bridgepoint
Capital Group Ltd [], to acquire joint control of Tuvturk
Kuzey, Tuvturk Guney and Tuvturk Istanbul, involved in vehicle
inspections in Turkey, with existing parent companies Tuv Sud of
Germany and Dogus Holding [] of Turkey. Test Tasit also
to take sole control of Adana, a Turkish vehicle inspection firm
(notified Sept. 1/deadline Oct. 6/simplified)
SECOND-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE:
-- U.S. software maker Oracle Corp <ORCL.O> to acquire the
whole of computer hardware maker Sun Microsystems Inc <JAVA.O>
(notified Aug. 3/deadline Sept. 3/in-depth investigation opened
on Sept. 3/new deadline Jan. 19, 2010)
GUIDE TO EU MERGER PROCESS
DEADLINES:
The European Commission has 25 working days after a deal is
filed for a first-stage review. It may extend that to 35 working
days, to consider either a company's proposed remedies or an EU
member state's request to handle the case.
Most mergers win approval but occasionally the Commission
opens a detailed second-stage investigation for up to 90
additional working days, which it may extend to 105 working
days.
SIMPLIFIED:
Under the simplified procedure, the Commission announces the
clearance of uncontroversial first-stage mergers without giving
any reason for its decision. Cases may be reclassified as
non-simplified -- that is, ordinary first-stage reviews -- until
they are approved.
