Brussels, 18/10/2006 (Agence Europe) - To the surprise of no-one, the Commission on Wednesday declared that Italy had violated article 21 of the EU Merger Regulation, which confers exclusive competence on the Commission to deal with Community-scale mergers (EUROPE 9288). Before the operation between the Spanish motorway company Albertis, and its Italian counterpart, Autostrade, was authorised by the Commission at the end of September (EUROPE 9272), the Italian authorities had raised several reservations, effectively blocking the project. Further to examination, it appears that the binding opinions of the Italian ministers for Infrastructure and Economic Affairs respectively, dated 4 August, and the decision to reject the project by the body responsible for granting motorway concessions in Italy (ANAS) on 5 August, are in breach of Community rules. These opinions and decisions reflect concerns relating to the capacity of the new entity to maintain investments for the upkeep and improvement of the motorway network and to respond to quality and safety standards. However, the Commission observed that at this stage, these measures do not seem designed to protect a legitimate interest in line with general principles and Community rules. The Italian authorities have 10 days to respond, whereupon the Commission may adopt a final decision calling for the decision of ANAS and the opinions of the ministers to be withdrawn.
The legal and factual basis for these measures is not clearly defined and the public interest which may be in jeopardy has not been clearly specified, the Commission explains in a press release. Similarly, the current agreement on motorway concessions seems perfectly apt to protect public interest and neither the measures nor the reasons behind them were communicated to it in the framework of its evaluation, the Commission adds. ANAS opposes the merger because the privatisation decree of the Italian company bans the presence of construction groups in the capital of Autostrade. Notwithstanding, the Spanish group ACS, which is active in this sector, is a stakeholder in Abertis and as such, set to hold 12.5% of the capital of the new entity. (ab)