The European Commission has cleared the purchase by CRH of several Lafarge and Holcim assets, being divested as part of their merger project. The Commission decided the merged company would face sufficiently strong competition after the merger, basing its assessment on the impact on customers located near the production facilities of CRH and of the divested assets. The Commission stated that its investigation was focused on the effects of the merger on competition for grey cement in three areas, namely (i) the cross border region between Poland and Slovakia, (ii) the cross border region between France and Belgium, and (iii) the United Kingdom. The Commission also looked at the competitive landscape for ready-mix concrete, cementitious materials, aggregates and asphalt in several regions of the European Economic Area (EEA). In all cases, the transaction was found to raise no competition concerns.
Adapted from press release by Katherine Guenioui
Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/24042015/european-commission-clears-crh-purchase-of-lafarge-holcim-assets-748/
