EU mergers and takeovers (March 13)

Petrol dd Ljubljana

13/03/2017 17:47

BRUSSELS, March 13 (Reuters) - The following are mergers 
under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the 
EU merger process: 
     
    APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS 
    -- German engineering company Siemens  SIEGn.DE  to merge 
assets with Spain's Gamesa  GAM.MC  to form the world's largest 
wind turbine maker (approved March 13) 
    -- Finnish fibre materials company Ahlstrom  AHL1V.HE  to 
merge with Finnish specialty paper maker Munksjo  MUNK1.HE  
(approved March 13) 
    -- Slovenian energy group Petrol  PETG.LJ  to take majority 
stake in natural gas wholesaler Geoplin (approved March 10) 
    -- UK tech company Micro Focus  MCRO.L  to acquire 
Hewlett-Packard Enterprise's  HPE.N  software business (approved 
March 8) 
    -- Private equity firm HIG Capital to acquire IT security 
products maker Infinigate Holding AG (approved March 7) 
     
    NEW LISTINGS 
    -- U.S. aircraft component maker Rockwell Collins  COL.N  to 
acquire aircraft interior maker B/E Aerospace  BEAV.O  (notified 
March 8/deadline April 12) 
    -- U.S. car part supplier Lear  LEA.N  to acquire Grupo 
Antolin's automotive seating business (notified March 8/deadline 
April 12/simplified) 
    -- Private equity firm Partners Group  PGHN.S  to acquire 
European operator of clinical pathology laboratory operator 
Cerba Healthcare from PAI Partners (notified March 7/deadline 
April 11/simplified) 
    -- Engie Group French banking group BPCE to acquire a 49.9 
percent stake in renewable energy companies LCS 4 and LCS 
(notified March 3/deadline April 7/simplified) 
     
    EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES 
    -- Dutch insurer NN Group  NN.AS  to acquire Dutch rival 
Group Delta Lloyd  DLL.AS  (notified Feb. 22/deadline extended 
to April 12 from March 29 after the Dutch competition regulator 
asked to examine the deal) 
     
    FIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE 
     
    MARCH 16 
    -- Australian investment bank Macquarie Group  MQG.AX  and 
the UK's National Grid to acquire joint control of National 
Grid's  NG.L  gas distribution business (notified Feb. 
9/deadline March 16) 
     
    MARCH 17 
    -- U.S. wireless carrier AT&T  T.N  to acquire U.S. 
broadcaster and TV studio Time Warner  TWX.N  (notified Feb. 
10/deadline March 17/simplified) 
     
    MARCH 20 
    -- General Electric Co  GE.N  to acquire rotor blade maker 
LM Wind Power Holding ((notified Feb. 13/deadline March 20) 
     
    MARCH 21 
    -- Swiss Post and Swiss rail company SBB to acquire joint 
control of Swisssign (notified Feb. 14/deadline March 
21/simplified) 
    -- Private equity firm Bain Capital to acquire building 
materials maker Consolis  LBOFCO.UL  (notified Feb. 14/deadline 
March 21/simplified) 
    -- Germany's Mabanol Bitumen and H&R Refining to set up a 
joint venture (notified Feb. 14/deadline March 21/simplified) 
     
    MARCH 22 
    -- French services and electrical engineering company Spie 
S.A.  SPIE.PA  to acquire German cenergy infrastructure services 
ompany SAG Vermogensverwaltung GmbH from private equity firm EQT 
(notified Feb. 15/deadline March 22/simplified) 
    -- Germany's Thyssenkrupp Technologies ThyssenKrupp 
 TKAG.DE  to acquire the remaining 49 percent of German maritime 
technology company Atlas Elektronik from Airbus  AIR.PA  
(notified Feb. 15/deadline March 22/simplified)  
     
    MARCH 24 
    -- Private equity firm Bain Capital to acquire Italian tyre 
maker Fintyre (notified Feb. 17/deadline March 24/simplified) 
    -- French utility EDF  EDF.PA  and French state bank Caisse 
des Depots to have joint control of French power grid operator 
RTE (notified Feb. 17/deadline March 24) 
     
    MARCH 27 
    -- Danish container shipping company Maersk  MAERSKb.CO  to 
acquire German peer Hamburg Sud (notified Feb. 20/deadline March 
27)  
    -- French bank Credit Agricole  CAGR.PA  subsidiary and 
French asset manager Amundi  AMUN.PA  to acquire rival Pioneer 
Investments from UniCredit  CRDI.MI  (notified Feb. 20/deadline 
March 27) 
    -- U.S. conglomerate Standard Industries to acquire German 
roof tile maker Braas Monier  BMSA.DE  (notified Feb. 
20/deadline March 27)  
     
    MARCH 28 
    -- Qatar Airways to acquire a 49 percent stake in Italian 
carrier Meridiana (notified Feb. 21/deadline March 28) 
    -- Indian car parts maker and engineering group Motherson 
Sumi Systems Ltd  MOSS.NS  to acquire Finnish maker of wiring 
harnesses for trucks PKC Group  PKC1V.HE  (notified Feb. 
21/deadline March 28) 
     
    MARCH 29 
    -- Buyout firm Lone Star to acquire German building 
materials maker Xella from private equity firm PAI Partners and 
funds managed by Goldman Sachs'  GS.N  investment arm (notified 
Feb. 22/deadline March 29) 
    -- AMC Entertainment Holdings  AMC.N , which is part of 
China's Dalian Wanda Group, to acquire cinema operator Nordic 
Cinema Group (notified Feb. 22/deadline March 29/simplified) 
     
    MARCH 30 
    -- Private equity firm Bridgepoint to acquire British 
vehicle leasing company Zenith from private equity firm 
HgCapital Trust Plc  HGT.L  (notified Feb. 23/deadline March 
30/simplified)  
     
    MARCH 31 
    -- Canadian pension fund manager OTPP to acquire French 
funeral service provider OGF Group (notified Feb. 24/deadline 
March 31/simplified) 
    -- Private equity firm Advent International to acquire 
biometrics and security business Morpho from French aerospace 
group Safran  SAF.PA  (notified Feb. 24/deadline March 31) 
    -- Britain's Rolls-Royce  RR.L  to acquire the remaining 
53.1 percent stake in Spanish aircraft engine and components 
maker Industria de Turbo Propulsores (ITP) (notified Feb. 
24/deadline March 31) 
    -- German synthetic rubber maker Lanxess AG  LXSG.DE  to 
acquire U.S. specialty chemical company Chemtura 
 CHMT.N (notified FEb. 24/deadline March 31) 
    -- Japanese trading company Sumitomo Corp  8053.T  to 
acquire a 25 percent stake in German auto parts maker Hay 
Holding GmbH from Japanese car parts maker Musashi Seimitsu 
Industry Ltd  7220.T  (notified Feb. 24/deadline March 
31/simplified)                           
     
    APRIL 3 
    -- Private equity firm Europa Capital, which is part of 
Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd, and Danish hotel operator Rezidor, 
which is controlled by hotel group Carlson Holdings Inc, to 
jointly acquire Warsaw hotel operator PHD Polska (notified Feb. 
27/deadline April 3/simplified) 
    -- Deutsche Boerse  DB1Gn.DE  and the London Stock Exchange 
 LSE.L  to merge (notified Aug. 24/deadline extended to April 3 
from March 13 after the companies offered concessions) 
     
    APRIL 4 
    -- U.S. computer and printer maker Hewlett Packard  HPQ.N  
to acquire South Korean group Samsung Electronics'  005930KS  
printer business (notified Feb. 28/deadline April 4) 
    -- Japan's Mitsubishi Chemical Group  MSCHML.UL  and Thai 
state-owned oil and gas company PTT Public Company Group to set 
up a joint venture (notified Feb. 28/deadline April 
4/simplified) 
    -- U.S. chemicals company Dow Chemical  DOW.N  to merge with 
DuPont  DD.N  (notified June 22/deadline extended to April 4 
from March 14 after the companies offered concessions) 
     
    APRIL 7 
    -- Twenty-First Century Fox  FOXA.O  to acquire the rest of 
European pay-TV company Sky  SKYB.L  it does not own (notified 
March 3/deadline April 7) 
     
    APRIL 10 
    -- French real estate asset management company Amundi 
Immobilier, which is part of French bank Credit Agricole 
 CAGR.PA , and French social protection services provider 
Malakoff Mederic to acquire joint control of German property 
developer TAS Kapstadtring (notified March 6/deadline April 
10/simplified) 
    -- UK property developer Segro  SGRO.L  and Canada's Public 
Sector Pension Investment Board to jointly acquire three 
logistics operations in Italy (notified March 6/deadline April 
10/simplified) 
     
    APRIL 12 
    -- Chinese state-owned company China National Chemical Corp 
(ChemChina)  CNNCC.UL  to acquire Swiss pesticides and seeds 
group Syngenta  SYNN.S  (notified Sept. 23/deadline extended to 
April 12) 
     
    APRIL 18 
    -- German cement producers Heidelbergcement  HEIG.DE  and 
Schwenk to jointly acquire Mexican peer Cemex's  CMXCPO.MX  
Croatian unit (notified Sept. 5/deadline extended to April 18 
from March 23) 
     
    SUSPENDED 
    -- Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR to buy stakes in 
Greek natural gas grid operator DESFA from Greek natural gas 
utility DEPA (notified Oct. 1/deadline suspended on Jan. 21) 
     
    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. 
 
 (Compiled by Foo Yun Chee) 
 ((Brussels newsroom; +32 2 287 68 30; 
brussels.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com)) 
 
Keywords: EU MERGERS/