Europe: The European Commission (EC) has cleared the acquisition of Italcementi by HeidelbergCement under the condition that HeidelbergCement sell Italcementi's entire business in Belgium. The EC expressed concern that the merged companies would have owned more than 50% of the market share in the country.
The EC accepted that the two companies’ businesses were largely complimentary in Europe. HeidelbergCement is active in Northern, Western and Central Europe whereas Italcementi focuses on Southern Europe, operating cement facilities in Italy, France, Spain and Greece. Italcementi is also active in Belgium and Bulgaria. However, it noted that the companies’ Ordinary Portland Cement activities overlapped substantially in in Belgium and to a lesser extent in Southern Italy. It also pointed out that there are cross-border overlaps between their grey cement activities in Germany and France and in Bulgaria and Romania. The merging parties' activities in aggregates and ready-mix concrete mainly overlap in Belgium and Northern Spain whereas their white cement activities overlap primarily in Belgium, France and Austria.
HeidelbergCement has offered to sell Italcementi’s Belgian subsidiary Compagnie des Ciments Belges (CCB). The divestment includes: all of Italcementi's cement, ready-mix and aggregates assets in Belgium; Italcementi's stake in an existing limestone joint venture with LafargeHolcim; a portion of HeidelbergCement's limestone quarry in Antoing provided in exchange for a portion of Italcementi's Barry quarry, which will be retained by HeidelbergCement.
“We are very pleased with the positive decision of the European Commission,” says Bernd Scheifele, chairman of the managing board of HeidelbergCement. “This decision is an important milestone on our way to the full acquisition of Italcementi.” HeidelbergCement. Is still awaiting the decision of the US regulator the Federal Trade Commission for approval in that territory.
