Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS NEWS: EC approves acquisition of GASAG by Vattenfall, ENGIE, (Dec 10, 2015)
Organizations Mentioned:Alberta Investment Management Corp. | ENGIE | EQT Services Ltd. | ERM Worldwide Group Ltd. | GASAG | OMERS Group | Top-Toy A/S | Vattenfall
By Greg Hammond, J.D.
The European Commission (EC) has cleared under the European Union (EU) merger regulation the acquisition of joint control over GASAG by Vattenfall and ENGIE.
GASAG is active in the sale and distribution of natural gas in parts of Germany. Vattenfall is an international energy company that supplies electricity and district heating in Berlin. Similarly, ENGIE supplies natural gas, electricity, and energy services and offers district heating in several cities in Germany. The EC determined that customers are unlikely to consider district heating and contract heating solutions as close alternatives. In addition, because the EC found that the proposed deal would have a limited impact on the market structure, given the small overlaps between the companies’ activities, the EC concluded that the transaction would not raise competition concerns.
ERM acquisition. The EC has also announced that it has cleared the proposed acquisition of ERM Worldwide Group Ltd. of the United Kingdom by OMERS Group and Alberta Investment Management Corp., both of Canada. ERM provides environmental, health, safety, risk, and social consulting services globally. Alberta Investment is one of Canada’s largest institutional investment fund managers. OMERS is the administrator of the Ontario municipal employees pension plan and manages an investment portfolio in various sectors. Finding that the transaction would only have a limited impact on the market structure, the EC concluded that the proposed acquisition would not raise competition concerns.
Top-Toy acquisition. Lastly, the EC has approved the proposed acquisition of Top-Toy A/S of Denmark by EQT Services Ltd. of the United Kingdom. EQT Services is a member of the EQT group, which is made up of various investment funds and their portfolio companies, including retail stores. Top-Toy is a toy retailer, with stores located across the Nordic countries and Germany. The EC determined that the proposed acquisition would not raise competition concerns because the companies have very limited overlapping activities.
Companies: Vattenfall; ENGIE; GASAG; ERM Worldwide Group Ltd.; OMERS Group; Alberta Investment Management Corp.; Top-Toy A/S; EQT Services Ltd.
News: AcquisitionsMergers Antitrust