EU extends deadline for review of Prezero-Suez deal

摘要

The EU Commission's review of Prezero's planned takeover of certain European waste management activities from French environmental group Suez is taking longer than initially expected. After Germany's Schwarz Group, the ultimate parent company of Prezero, submitted commitments to the Commission's Competition Directorate-General on 17 March, the deadline for the merger review was extended from 23 March until 14 April. Final decision on the Prezero-Suez deal was not published by the EU antitrust authority when this issue went to press. Schwarz Group has offered to divest assets in order to allay competition concerns, news agency Reuters reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. Prezero declined to comment on the ongoing EU merger clearance process. The Commission must now decide by mid-April whether it accepts the commitments, requires further measures or launches a four-month in-depth investigation of the proposed transaction.