CELEX: 32015M7516
Language: en
Date: 2015-04-28 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 28/04/2015 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.7516 - STARWOOD CAPITAL GROUP / MELIA HOTELS INTERNATIONAL / SOL AND MELIA HOTEL PORTFOLIO) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

|[pic]                             |EUROPEAN COMMISSION                                                                                      |

                                        Brussels, 28/04/2015
                                        C(2015) 3033 Final

                                        [pic]

|To the notifying parties:                                              |                                                                       |
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Dear Sirs,

Subject:    Case M. 7516  STARWOOD CAPITAL GROUP/ MELIA HOTELS INTERNATIONAL/ SOL AND MELIA HOTEL PORTFOLIO
         Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004[1] and Article 57 of the Agreement on the
         European Economic Area[2]

 1. On 30 March 2015, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the  Merger  Regulation
    by which undertakings Starwood Capital Group (United States) and Melia Hotels International (Spain) acquire within the  meaning  of  Article
    3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation joint control of six hotels located in Spain (the "Sol & Melia Hotel Portfolio")  by  way  of  purchase  of
    shares and contracts of management.[3]

 2. The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

  – for Starwood Capital Group: investment firm focusing on global real estate.

  – for Melia Hotels International: hotel company and the largest hotel chain in Spain in both resort and city  hotels.  It  currently  operates
    more than 350 hotels in 35 countries.

  – for Sol&Melia Hotel Portfolio: consists of six hotels in popular vacation  resorts  in  Spain  (Costa  del  Sol,  Fuerteventura,  Lanzarote,
    Mallorca and Ibiza).

 3. After examination of the notification, the European Commission has concluded that the notified operation  falls  within  the  scope  of  the
    Merger Regulation and of paragraph 6 of the Commission Notice on a simplified  procedure  for  treatment  of  certain  concentrations  under
    Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.[4]

 4. For the reasons set out in the Notice on a simplified procedure, the European Commission has decided not to oppose  the  notified  operation
    and to declare it compatible with the internal market and with the EEA Agreement. This decision is adopted in application of Article 6(1)(b)
    of the Merger Regulation and Article 57 of the EEA Agreement.

                                        For the Commission
                                        (Signed)
                                        Alexander ITALIANER
                                        Director-General

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[1]   OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the "Merger Regulation"). With effect from 1 December 2009, the Treaty on the Functioning of the  European  Union
    ("TFEU") has introduced certain changes, such as the replacement of "Community" by "Union" and "common market"  by  "internal  market".  The
    terminology of the TFEU will be used throughout this decision.

[2]   OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 ("the EEA Agreement").

[3]   Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 114, 09.04.2015, p. 5.

[4]   OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

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                                                                  PUBLIC VERSION

                                                           SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE