Case T-289/24: Judgment of the General Court of 2 July 2025 – Brasserie Nationale and Munhowen v Commission (Competition – Concentrations – Wholesale beverages distribution market – Article 22 of Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 – Request for referral to the Commission from a Member State’s competition authority not having competence according to the national legislation to examine the concentration – Decision of the Commission to examine the concentration – Time limit for submitting the referral request – Concept of making known – Information of the undertakings concerned on the referral request – Rules governing languages – Time limit to notify the decision of the Commission to examine the concentration – Effect on trade between Member States – Threat of significant effect on competition – Appropriate nature of referral)
Date: 2025-07-02
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: Luxembourg, beer, beverage industry, economic concentration, merger control, restriction on competition, rights of the defence, use of languages








C_202504455EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/4455


18.8.2025






Judgment of the General Court of 2 July 2025 – Brasserie Nationale and Munhowen v Commission


(Case T-289/24)
                (1)

(Competition - Concentrations - Wholesale beverages distribution market - Article 22 of Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 - Request for referral to the Commission from a Member State’s competition authority not having competence according to the national legislation to examine the concentration - Decision of the Commission to examine the concentration - Time limit for submitting the referral request - Concept of ‘making known’ - Information of the undertakings concerned on the referral request - Rules governing languages - Time limit to notify the decision of the Commission to examine the concentration - Effect on trade between Member States - Threat of significant effect on competition - Appropriate nature of referral)
(C/2025/4455)
Language of the case: French

Parties


Applicants: Brasserie Nationale (formerly Brasseries Funck-Bricher and Bofferding), (Bascharage, Luxembourg), Munhowen SA (Ehlerange, Luxembourg) (represented by: G. Parleani, lawyer)

Defendant: European Commission (represented by: P. Berghe and N. Cambien, Agents)

Interveners in support of the defendant: Autorité de concurrence du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg (Luxembourg, Luxembourg) (represented by: P. Kinsch and V. Richard, lawyers), Anheuser-Busch InBev (Brussels, Belgium) (representanted by: K. Veranneman and J.-P. Roemen, lawyers)

Re:

By their action based on Article 263 TFEU, the applicants seek the annulment of decision C(2024) 1788 final of the European Commission of 14 March 2024, adopted under Article 22(3) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 of 20 January 2004 on the control of concentrations between undertakings (OJ 2004 L 24, p. 1) and Article 57 of the EEA Agreement, by which it granted the request of the Autorité de concurrence du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg to examine the acquisition, by Brasserie Nationale, of the exclusive control of Boissons Heintz Sàrl (Case M.11485 – Brasserie Nationale v Boissons Heintz).

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Dismisses the action;










2.


Orders Brasserie Nationale (formerly Brasseries Funck-Bricher and Bofferding) and Munhowen SA to pay, in addition to their own costs, those incurred by the European Commission;










3.


Orders Anheuser-Busch InBev and the Autorité de concurrence du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg to bear their own costs.






(1)  
            OJ C, C/2024/4484 of 22.7.2024.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/4455/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)