On Thursday 11 February, the European Commission authorised the proposed acquisition of the Belgian company Belchim by the Japanese group Mitsui. The authorisation is subject to full compliance with a set of commitments proposed by Mitsui.
Belchim and Mitsui distribute crop protection products and supply products for crops (potatoes, vegetables and vines). These companies sell products that use mainly off-patent ‘active ingredients’.
To address competition concerns, Mitsui has proposed several structural measures: - transferring to one or two remedy takers, in one or two packages (one for Germany and Poland, the other for the Nordic countries), Mitsui’s distribution agreement and customer relationships for its plant growth regulators (PGR) for potatoes; - transferring to a remedy taker Belchim’s distribution agreement and the agreements relating to its paraffinic oils for virus control in seed potatoes and flower bulbs in the Netherlands.
The businesses divested in the potato and paraffin oil PGRs include access to intellectual property rights and trademarks, spreading machinery, and training.
The commitments fully eliminate the overlaps between Mitsui and Belchim in the markets where the Commission identified competition concerns.
Link to this competition case: http://bit.ly/2MVpPDW (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)