EU mergers and takeovers (July 1)
01/07/2014 13:17
BRUSSELS, July 1 (Reuters) - The following are mergers under
review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU
merger process:
APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS
-- Dutch fund manager Amvest and Dutch private equity firm
NPM to jointly acquire Dutch nursing home opeator Het Gastenhuis
(approved July 1)
NEW LISTINGS
-- German engineering company Siemens AG SIEGn.DE to buy
Rolls-Royce plc's RROYC.UL aero-derivative gas turbine
business, and also to acquire joint control of turbine services
company Rolls Wood Group Ltd, which is a joint venture between
Rolls-Royce plc and John Wood Group WG.L (notified June
27/deadline Aug. 4)
-- French public holding company ADP and airport duty-free
retailer Aelia to acquire joint control of Mziz Retail (notified
June 27/deadline Aug. 4/simplified)
EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES
None
FIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE
JULY 2
-- British telecoms operator Vodafone VOD.L to acquire
Spanish cables company Ono (notified May 23/deadliine July 2)
JULY 3
-- Private equity firm The Carlyle Group CG.O to acquire
commodities merchant Traxys (notified May 26/deadline July
3/simplified)
JULY 8
-- Private equity firms Advent International and Bain
Capital to jointly acquire payment cards supplier Nets Holding
(notified June 2/deadline July 8)
JULY 10
-- Reggeborgh to acquire the rest of energy products
supplier Argos Group Holding B.V. from AEG Invest B.V. (notified
June 4/deadline July 10)
-- Remondis Nederland and Sita Recycling Services to set up
a joint venture (notified June 4/deadline July 10/simplified)
-- Spanish telecoms provider Telefonica TEF.MC to buy
Dutch peer KPN's KPN.AS German unit (notified Oct. 31/deadline
extended to July 10 from July 3)
JULY 11
-- Private equity firm Pai Partners to buy audiovisual
technical services provider Euro Media Group (notified June
5/deadline July 11/simplified)
-- Private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice to acquire
German plastic packaging maker Mauser DUBAHI.UL (notified June
5/deadline July 11/simplified)
-- Sonangol Comercializacao Internacional Ltd (Sonaci),
which is a subsidiary of Angolan state owned energy group
Sociedade Nacional de Combustiveis de Angola, Empresa Publica,
and energy and commodities trader DTS, which is a joint venture
between Trafigura Beheer B.V. and Cochan Ltd, to set up a joint
venture (notified June 5/deadline July 11/simplified)
JULY 14
-- Private equity firm The Carlyle Group CG.O and Chinese
home appliance maker Qingdao Haier 600690.SS to acquire Haier
Biomedical and Laboratory Products Ltd (notified June 6/deadline
July 14)
JULY 15
-- Swedish steelmaker SSAB SSABa.ST to buy Finnish peer
Rautaruukki Corp RTRKS.HE (notified May 22/deadline extended
to July 15 from July 1 after SSAB submitted concessions)
-- French agricultural cooperative Lur Berri and private
equity firm Pai Partners to acquire joint control of French food
products distributor Labeyrie Fine Foods (notified June
10/deadline July 15
-- Private equity firm TowerBrook Capital Partners to
acquire British healthcare provider Independent Clinical
Services Group (notified June 10/deadline July 15/simplified)
-- U.S. media group Viacom Inc VIAB.O to buy British
broadcaster Channel 5 (notified June 10/deadline July
15/simplified)
-- French car parts maker Faurecia EPED.PA and Italian
peer Magnetti Marelli to set up a joint venture (notified June
10/deadline July 15/simplified)
JULY 16
-- Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners CVC.UL to buy
Spanish olive oil bottler Deoleo OLEO.MC (notified June
11/deadline July 16/simplified)
-- Russian private equity firm Sistema JSF Corp to buy
Segheza Pulp and Paper Mill (notified June 11/deadline July
16/simplified)
-- Investment holding compan Letterone Holdings SA to
acquire German energy company RWE Dea RWEDE.UL (notified June
11/deadline July 16/simplified)
JULY 18
-- U.S.-based agricultural trader Cargill CARG.UL and
Brazilian trader Copersucar S.A. to set up a joint venture
(notified June 13/deadline July 18/simplified)
JULY 22
-- Golden Agri-Resources GAGR.SI and chemicals company
CEPSA Quimica, which is a unit of Abu Dhabi state-owned
International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC), to jointly control
a joint venture (notified June 16/deadline July 22/simplified)
-- French IT services company Sopra Group SOPR.PA to
acquire French peer Groupe Steria TERI.PA (notified June
16/deadline July 22/simplified)
-- French bank BNP Paribas Fortis BNPP.PA to buy Poland's
Bank Gospodarki Zywnosciowej (notified June 16/deadline July
22/simplified)
JULY 23
-- Russian equipment maker Russian Machines, which is part
of Russian business group the Basic Element and German holding
company Fritzmeier to set up a joint venture (notified June
17/deadline July 23/simplified)
-- Hedge fund Apollo to buy Dutch TV company Endemol
(notified June 17/deadline July 23/simplified)
JULY 24
-- Belgian wire producer Bekaert BEKB.BR and Officine
Maccaferri to set up a joint venture (notified June 18/deadliine
July 24/simplified)
JULY 25
-- Broad Street Principal Investments Holdings which is
owned by U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs GS.N , and KFG
Investment, which is a unit of Koch Industries KCHIN.UL , to
acquire joint control of printing ink prdoucer Flint FLGRP.UL
(notified June 19/deadline July 25/simplified)
-- China's Weichai Power 000338.SZ to acquire sole control
of German forklift truck maker Kion Group KGX.DE (notified
June 19/deadline July 25/simplified)
-- French services company Groupe Lagardere and French
railway SNCF Participations SNCFF.UL to set up a joint venture
(notified June 19/deadline July 25)
JULY 30
-- Petrochemicals group INEOS and chemicals company Doeflex
to combine their PVC businesses (notified June 24/deadline July
30)
-- Apple Inc AAPL.O to acquire music streaming and audio
equipment company Beats (notified June 24/deadline July 30)
-- British engineering company Amec AMEC.L to buy
Swiss-based peer Foster Wheeler FWLT.O (notified June
24/deadline July 30/simplified)
-- Belgian wire maker Bekaert BEKB.BR to buy Italian tyre
maker Pirelli's PECI.MI steelcord business (notified June
24/deadline July 30)
AUG 1
-- German drugmaker Allergopharma, French healthcare
provider Stallergenes, Spanish drugmaker LETI aand Global Asthma
and Allergy European Network e.V. to set up a joint venture
(notified June 26/deadline Aug. 1/simplified)
AUG 4
-- Private equity firm Bridgepoint Advisers to buy
management group Edmond de Rothschild Capital Partners (notified
June 27/deadline Aug 4)
SEPT 5
-- Mexican cement producer Cemex CMXCPO.MX to acquire
Swiss peer Holcim's HOLN.VX Spanish cement business (notified
Feb. 28/deadline extended to April 23 from April 4 after Cemex
submitted concessions/in-depth investigation announced April
23/new deadline Sept. 5)
SEPT 18
-- U.S. chemical maker Huntsman Corp HUN.N to acquire U.S.
peer Rockwood Holdings's ROC.N titanium dioxide pigments
business (notified Jan. 29/deadline extended to Sept. 18 from
Aug. 20/commitments submitted on March 28)
OCT 17
-- U.S. cable company Liberty Global LBTYA.O to acquire
Dutch peer Ziggo ZIGGO.AS (notified March 14/deadline extended
to Oct. 17 from Sept. 19 after Liberty Global asked for more
time)
DEADLINE UNKNOWN
-- U.S. orthopedic products maker Zimmer Holdings Inc
ZMH.N to buy rival Biomet Inc LVBHAB.UL (notified June
3/notification declared incomplete on June 11)
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 by 10 working
days 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.
(Editing by Foo Yun Chee)
((brussels.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com)(+32-2-287-6830))
Keywords: EU MERGERS/TAKEOVERS