The European Commission conditionally approved on Wednesday 20 March the acquisition of Asco by Spirit, in accordance with EU competition law rules.
Both Spirit (based in the United States) and Asco (based in Belgium) are active in the aerospace equipment sector and have a global presence. Following a first notification on 17 September 2018, which was withdrawn, and a second on 30 January, the Commission examined the effects of the operation on competition.
It then considered that the acquisition would not raise any concerns regarding vertical supply relationships and markets where the companies' activities overlap at the horizontal level.
On the other hand, the institution initially feared that the operation would significantly reduce competition in the global market for slat system devices, which allow aircraft to reduce their speed, particularly in the case of slats. Both companies are active at different levels of the supply chain with regard to these devices and the Commission was concerned that they might be able to coordinate their actions following the operation as initially envisaged.
To address the institution's concerns, Spirit proposed to change the structure of a company, Belairbus, of which Asco is a member, and no longer to give it a commercial and technical platform role in negotiations with Airbus. This is because Belairbus currently manages the commercial aspects of contracts to supply Airbus with slat system devices.
In addition, the two companies have proposed to put in place mechanisms to ensure that sensitive information held by Sonaca, one of Asco's partners in Belairbus, is not transferred to the future joint venture.
Subject to compliance with these commitments, the Commission has validated the proposed acquisition in the light of EU competition law rules. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)