On Friday 25 August, the European Commission conditionally cleared the accusation of the Dutch company Pelican Rouge by the Swiss company Selecta.
Both companies are active in the provision of automatic distribution services in the European Economic Area (EEA) and notified the Commission of the planned transaction on 5 July of this year.
The institution looked into the effects of the possible merger in the EEA and on certain national markets on which the two companies are currently competitors. Following its examination, it concluded that the transaction would not cause serious problems on the automatic distribution services market in the EEA or on the national markets, with the exception of Finland. It found that there was the possibility of anti-competitive effects on the Finnish market, given the size of the combined market share of the two companies.
In order to appease the Commission's concerns, Selecta therefore proposed to divest all of its automatic distribution activities in Finland, thereby excluding the risks to competition posed by the original plan. The Commission then concluded that if Selecta fully complied with its commitments, the acquisition of Pelican Rouge would be compatible with the rules of EU competition law. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)