Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.10999 – SABIC AN / ETG WORLD / EIHL) Candidate case for simplified procedure (Text with EEA relevance) 2023/C 36/04
Date: 2023-01-31
Institutions: Directorate-General for Competition, European Commission
Subjects: digital transformation, economic concentration, energy industry, fertiliser industry, logistics, merger control, supply chain








C_2023036EN.01004501.xml










31.1.2023   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 36/45






Prior notification of a concentration
(Case M.10999 – SABIC AN / ETG WORLD / EIHL)
Candidate case for simplified procedure
(Text with EEA relevance)
(2023/C 36/04)

1.   
On 20 January 2023, the Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (1).
This notification concerns the following undertakings:






—


SABIC Agri-Nutrients Company (‘SABIC AN’, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), controlled by Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (‘SABIC’, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia), which is, in turn, controlled by Saudi Arabian Oil Company (‘Saudi Aramco’, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia),










—


ETC Group (‘ETG World’, Mauritius),










—


ETG Inputs Holdco Limited (‘EIHL’, United Arab Emirates), currently joint controlled by ETG World and the Government Employees Pension Fund of South Africa, represented by the Public Investment Corporation SOC Limited of South Africa (the ‘PIC’, South Africa).




SABIC AN and ETG World will acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) and 3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control of EIHL.
The concentration is accomplished by way of purchase of shares.


2.   
The business activities of the undertakings concerned are the following:






—


SABIC AN is a producer of various fertiliser materials which it primarily sells to customers in Saudi Arabia.










—


ETG World is a multinational conglomerate with a diverse portfolio of expertise across multiple industries, encompassing agricultural fertilisers (via EIHL), logistics, merchandising and processing, supply chain optimisation, digital transformation, and energy.










—


EIHL is an importer, blender, and distributor of fertilisers with a focus on the African continent and it is not active in the EEA. EIHL’s primary activity is to acquire raw fertiliser materials, blends them into fertiliser mixes and distributes these to retailers and directly to end-customers.






3.   
On preliminary examination, the Commission finds that the notified transaction could fall within the scope of the Merger Regulation. However, the final decision on this point is reserved.
Pursuant to the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (2) it should be noted that this case is a candidate for treatment under the procedure set out in the Notice.


4.   
The Commission invites interested third parties to submit their possible observations on the proposed operation to the Commission.
Observations must reach the Commission not later than 10 days following the date of this publication. The following reference should always be specified:
M.10999 – SABIC AN / ETG WORLD / EIHL
Observations can be sent to the Commission by email or by post. Please use the contact details below:
Email: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu
Postal address:





European Commission




Directorate-General for Competition




Merger Registry




1049 Bruxelles/Brussel




BELGIQUE/BELGIË







(1)  OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘Merger Regulation’).

(2)  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.