Brussels, 01/09/2000 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has given its approval to a concentration operation whereby TotalFina Deutschland GmbH (TFD), German subsidiary of the French group TotalFina Elf, will take part in the control of Michel Mineralölhandel GmbH (MMH), a subsidary of the German company Saarberg AG. The latter's activities include the distribution of mineral oil products through the intermediary of its direct and indirect subsidiaries which are, in addition to MMH, Saarberg Handel GmbH (SH) and Total Mineralölvertrieb GmbH (TMV), a joint company between SH and TFD. MMH is active in the trading of mineral oil products in the non-retail markets, mainly in certain regions of former West Germany. The Commission has approved the operation, considering that the entity formed from the move will have to face considerable competition. It has serious rivals both nationally and regionally, most being subsidiaries of large oil groups which operate at a global level.