The following are mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU merger process:
APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS
-- U.S. conglomerate United Technologies Corp to acquire U.S. aircraft components maker Goodrich (approved July 26)
NEW LISTINGS
-- Germany's Marquard & Bahls, which is owned by German oil trader Mabanaft GmbH, and German industrial gass producer Linde to set up a gas supply joint venture (notified July 26/deadline Aug. 31/simplified)
-- South Africa's Mondi Group to acquire German packaging company Nordenia from private equity firm Oaktree Capital (notified July 25/deadline Aug. 30)
EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES
-- U.S. mail delivery company United Parcel Service Inc to acquire Dutch peer TNT Express (notified June 15/deadline extended for the second time to Dec. 12 from Nov. 28 after the companies asked for more time)
FIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE
JULY 27
-- U.S. car parts maker Delphi Automotive Plc to buy FCI Group's motorized vehicles unit (MVL) which is owned by private equity firm Bain Capital (notified June 22/deadline July 27)
JULY 30
-- German insurer Allianz to buy the property and casualty brokerage-related activities of Gan Eurocourtage, a unit of French peer Groupama (notified June 25/deadline July 30)
JULY 31
-- Russian crude producer Lukoil to increase its stake in Italy-based Isab refinery (notified June 26/deadline July 31/simplified)
AUG 6
-- Swiss-based trading house Gunvor to acquire refiner Petroplus's oil plant in Germany (notified July 2/deadline Aug. 6/simplified)
AUG 8
-- Austrian lender Raiffeisen Bank International to buy a majority stake in Polbank from Greek lender EFG Eurobank (notified July 4/deadline Aug. 8/simplified)
AUG 9
-- Investment bank Goldman Sachs and investor William C Young to acquire joint control of plastic products manufacturer Plastipak Holding (notified July 5/deadline Aug. 9/simplified)
-- Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp and Japanese electronics company Mitsubishi Electric Corp to acquire joint control of Mitsubishi Elevator Singapore Co. Ltd (notified July 5/deadline Aug. 9/simplified)
AUG 10
-- British buyout group Melrose Plc to acquire Germany utility meter maker Elster Group SE (notified July 6/deadline Aug. 10/simplified)
AUG 13
-- Dutch public sector consulting firm BMC Investments BV and some units to carry out a debt-for-equity swap, the terms of which amount to granting joint control to ABN AMRO's AAEC unit and ING's unit Entero (notified July 9/deadline Aug. 13)
-- Investment fund EQT VI intends to acquire sole control over medical and dental instruments firm BSN medical Acquisition Holding GmbH and BSN medical Netherlands Holding BV and their subsidiaries (notified July 9/deadline Aug. 13)
-- Swedish private equity investor EQT to buy German bandage and plaster cast maker BSN Medical (notified July 9/deadline Aug. 13)
AUG 20
-- Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. and Mitsubishi Electric Corp. intend to acquire joint control over Colombian elevator and escalator firm Melco de Colombia Ltda, which already has the rights to Mitsubishi technology in the region. (notified July 13/deadline Aug. 20)
AUG 22
-- Germany's TSR Recycling to buy the remaining 50 percent of HKS Scrap Metals it does not own (notified July 17/deadline Aug. 22/simplified)
AUG 23
-- Dutch bank ABN AMRO, Rabobank's Rabo Investments B.V., Friesland Bank N.V. and Lansbanki Islands HF to acquire joint control of shrimp distributor Heiploeg Holding B.V. (notified July 18/deadline Aug. 23)
AUG 24
-- Private equity firm Oaktree and Marathon Asset Management to buy health and fitness club operator Fitness First (notified July 19/deadline Aug. 24/simplified)
AUG 27
-- Japan's Mitsubishi Motors Corp, Mitsubishi Corp and China's Guangzhou Automobile to set up a joint venture to make cars in China (notified July 20/deadline Aug. 27/simplified)
-- Procter & Gamble to acquire the rest of sanitary product producer Arbora, which is a joint venture between the company and Arborinvest (notified July 20/deadline Aug. 27/simplified)
AUG 29
-- Ryanair to acquire Aer Lingus (notified July 24/deadline Aug. 29)
SEPT 6
-- Vivendi's Universal Music Group to buy British record label EMI's recorded music unit from Citigroup Inc (notified Feb. 17/deadline extended for the second time to Sept. 6 from Aug. 8 after the Commission asked for more time)
SEPT 19
-- Telefonica UK and Vodafone UK to set up a joint venture providing mobile commerce services (notified March 6/deadline extended for the second time to Sept. 19 from Aug. 27 after the companies requested an extension)
OCT 24
-- Finnish group Outokumpu to acquire German group ThyssenKrupp's Inoxum stainless steel unit (notified April 10/deadline extended for the second time to Oct. 24 from Sept. 26 after the companies asked for more time)
NOV 6
-- Hong Kong's Hutchison 3G, which is part of Hutchison Whampoa, to acquire telecoms operator Orange Austria from France Telecom (notified May 7/deadline extended to Nov. 6 from June 29 after the EU Commission opens an in-depth probe)
GUIDE TO EU MERGER PROCESS
DEADLINES:
The European Commission has 25 working days after a deal is filed for a first-stage review. It may extend that by 10 working days to 35 working days, to consider either a company's proposed remedies or an EU member state's request to handle the case.
Most mergers win approval but occasionally the Commission opens a detailed second-stage investigation for up to 90 additional working days, which it may extend to 105 working days.
SIMPLIFIED:
Under the simplified procedure, the Commission announces the clearance of uncontroversial first-stage mergers without giving any reason for its decision. Cases may be reclassified as non-simplified -- that is, ordinary first-stage reviews -- until they are approved.
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