EU mergers and takeovers (April 10)
BRUSSELS, April 10 (Reuters) - The following are mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU merger process:
APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS
-- Private equity firm Riverstone and British bank Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) to jointly acquire oil producer Origo (approved April 10)
-- Chinese state-owned steelmaker Hebei Iron & Steel Group to acquire a controlling stake in Swiss steel product trader from DPH Duferco International Trading Holding (approved April 10/)
NEW LISTINGS
-- Investment fund Bain Capital Investors to acquire auto fluids maker TI Fluid Systems (notified April 9/deadline May 19/simplified)
-- Predica Prevoyance and investment fund Omnes Capital to jointly acquire wind farms (notified April 8/deadline May 18/simplified)
-- Canadian property and casualty insurer Fairfax Financial Holdings to acquire British specialty insurer Brit Plc (LSE: BRIT.L - news) (notified April 8/deadline May 18/simplified)
-- Spamish lender Caixabank (Other OTC: CAIXY - news) to acquire control of Portuguese bank Banco BPI (notified April 7/deadline May 13/simplified)
EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES
-- Norwegian telecoms company Telenor (LSE: 0G8C.L - news) and Swedish peer TeliaSonera to combine their Danish mobile businesses (notified Feb. 27/deadline extended to Sept. 2 from Aug. 19 after the companies asked for more time)
-- German conglomerate Siemens (Xetra: SIEC.DE - news) to purchase U.S. oilfield equipment maker Dresser-Rand Group Inc (notified Jan. 9/deadline July 24)
FIRST (Other OTC: FSTC - news) -STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE
APRIL 20
-- Finnish ship engine and power plant maker Wartsila to buy navigation systems maker L-3 Marine Systems from L-3 Holding (notified March 11/deadline April 20/simplified)
-- Telecoms group Altice to acquire Brazilian peer Grupo Oi's Portuguese assets (notified Feb. 25/deadline April 20/concessions offered April 20/Portuguese competition authority asked to review the case on March 5)
APRIL 21
-- Private equity firms Ardian France and F2i SGR to acquire joint control of investor F2i Aeroporti which holds stakes in companies operating at Italian airports (notified March 12/deadline April 21)
APRIL 23
-- German industrial services group Bilfinger and merchandising and management services provider Papstar Holding AG to set up a joint venture (notified March 16/deadline April 23/simplified)
APRIL 27
-- U.S. bank Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS-PB - news) and French property developer Altarea to jointly acquire French holding company Pascal Defense S.A.R.L. (notified March 18/deadline April 27/simplified)
-- Irish cement firm CRH (NYSE: CRH - news) to buy assets from merging companies Lafarge (Paris: FR0000120537 - news) and Holcim (notified March 18/deadline April 27)
APRIL 28
-- Canadian public pension fund Caisse de Depot du Placement du Quebec and British asset manager Hermes to acquire 40 percent of British high-speed rail Eurostar International Ltd, which is 55 percent owned by French rail operator SNCF Mobilities (notified March 19/deadline April 28)
APRIL 29
-- Austrian property developer CA Immo to acquire control of Austrian peer Immofinanz (Vienna: IIA.VI - news) (notified March 20/deadline April 29/simplified)
APRIL 30
-- German agricultural products distributor Baywa , German electric heating producer GlenDimplex and German energy software developer Greencom to acquire shares in energy services provider BEEGY GmbH (notified March 23/deadline April 30/simplified)
MAY 5
-- Qatari-backed investor Constellation Hotels to acquire InterContinental Hotels Group's flagship Le Grand hotel in Paris (notified March 25/deadline May 5/simplified)
-- U.S. conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway (Sao Paolo: BERK34.SA - news) to acquire German motorcycle apparel and accessories retailer Detlev Louis Motrorrad-Vertriebs GmbH (notified March 25/deadline May 5/simplified)
MAY 7
-- MI Fashion Ltd and L Capital Asia 2 Pte Ltd to acquire joint control of clothing retailer Pepe Jeans Group (notified March 27/deadline May 7/simplified)
MAY 8
-- U.S. investment firm Starwood Capital Group and Spanish hotel chain Melia Hotels International to acquire joint control of six hotels in Spain (notified March 30/deadline May 8/simplified)
MAY 11
-- Japanese electronics group Hitachi (Other OTC: HTHIF - news) to acquire Italian train maker AnsaldoBreda and its rail-signalling company Ansaldo STS (LSE: 0NK9.L - news) from Italian aerospace and defence group Finmeccanica (notified March 31/deadline May 11/simplified)
MAY 12
-- French seismic survey group CGG (LSE: 0O2V.L - news) and British energy consultancy Wood MacKenzie to set up a joint venture (notified April 1/deadline May 12/simplified)
-- Investment fund Apollo Management to acquire German mail order and Internet retailer Walz Group (notified April 1/deadline May 12/simplified)
-- Japan's Mitsui Chemicals and South Korean conglomerate SK Holdings to set up a joint venture (notified April 1/deadline May 12/simplified)
-- French equity firm Ardian to acquire a 65-percent stake in Spanish toll-road operator Tunels, which is 35-percent controlled by Spanish toll-road operator Abertis SA (notified April 1/deadline May 12)
MAY 13
-- Czech energy group Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding (EPH) to acquire some Italian coal and gas businesses from German utility E.ON (notified April 7/deadline May 13/simplified)
JUNE 1
-- French telecoms operator Orange (LSE: 0OQV.L - news) to acquire Spanish provider Jazztel (notified Oct. 16/new deadline June 1 after Commission lifts deadline suspension)
-- Mondelez International Inc (Xetra: A1J4U0 - news) and competitor D.E Master Blenders to merge their coffee businesses in new company called Jacobs Douwe Egberts (notified Oct. 27/deadline extended for the fourth time to June 1 from May 13)
JUNE 26
-- PRS for Music Ltd (PRSfM), Foreningen Svenska Tonsattares Internationella Mysikbyra (Stim) and Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte (Gema) to set up a joint venture to administer mechanical and performing rights (notified Nov. 28/deadline June 26/companies offer commitments on March 13)
JULY 23
-- Commodities trader Cargill to buy rival Archer Daniels Midland Co's global chocolate business (notified Jan. 19/deadline extended to July 23 from July 8 after the companies asked for more time)
AUG 6
-- U.S. conglomerate General Electric to acquire most of French engineering group Alstom (LSE: 0J2R.L - news) 's power equipment business (notified Jan. 19/deadline extended for the second time to Aug. 6 from July 8 after GE asked for more time)
SUSPENDED
-- SOCAR, Azerbaijan's state energy company, to buy stakes in Greek natural gas grid operator DESFA from Greek natural gas utility DEPA (notified Oct. 1/deadline suspended on Jan. 21)
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. (Compiled by Foo Yun Chee)