CELEX: 32021M10219
Language: en
Date: 2021-05-10 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 10/05/2021 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.10219 - CERBERUS / KOCH INDUSTRIES / PQ PERFORMANCE CHEMICALS) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels,10.5.2021
                                                                C(2021) 3433 final
                                                                                PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                Cerberus Capital Management, L.P.
                                                                875 Third Avenue
                                                                NY 10022 New York
                                                                United States of America
                                                                Koch Minerals & Trading, LLC
                                                                4111 East 37th Street North
                                                                67220 Wichita, Kansas
                                                                United States of America
Subject:        Case M.10219 - CERBERUS / KOCH INDUSTRIES / PQ
                PERFORMANCE CHEMICALS
                Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation
                                       1
                (EC) No 139/2004 and Article 57 of the Agreement on the European
                                    2
                Economic Area
Dear Sir or Madam,
1.      On 14 April 2021, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which the
        undertakings Cerberus Capital Management L.P. (“Cerberus”, USA) and Koch
        Minerals & Trading, LLC (“KM&T”, USA), controlled by Koch Industries, Inc.
        (“KII”, USA) acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation
        joint control of the undertakings PQ LLC, PQ International Cooperative UA and PQ
        Netherlands Cooperative LLC (Netherlands) and PQ Silicates Limited, PQ China
        (Hong Kong) Limited (Hong Kong) and each of their respective subsidiaries (together
        “PQ Performance Chemicals”), controlled by PQ Group Holdings, Inc. (“PQ Group”,
        USA). The concentration is accomplished by way of purchase of shares.3
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 139, 20.04.2021, p. 9.
Commission européenne, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Bruxelles, BELGIQUE
Europese Commissie, DG COMP MERGER REGISTRY, 1049 Brussel, BELGIË
Tel: +32 229-91111. Fax: +32 229-64301. E-mail: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu.
 ---pagebreak--- 2. The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:
       for Cerberus: investment in real property and personal property of all kinds
        worldwide. Some of the main sectors in which the undertakings controlled by the
        Cerberus Group generate turnover are financial services, manufacturing, building
        materials and real estate,
       for KM&T: dry-bulk commodity handler, which markets and trades commodities
        such as petroleum coke, coal, sulfur, wood pulp and paper products,
       for KII: control of a diverse portfolio of companies involved in refining and
        chemicals, process and pollution control equipment and technologies, minerals,
        fertilizers, commodity trading and services, polymers and fibers, glass, forest and
        consumer products, electronic connectors, ranching, printing and packing,
        enterprise software and investments,
       for PQ Performance Chemicals: producer of sodium silica’s, downstream
        specialty silicas, zeolites and other derivatives. The products manufactured by PQ
        Performance Chemicals are used as input products across a range of personal
        care, cleaning, food and beverage and surface coating products.
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 5(b) 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)
                                                      Olivier GUERSENT
                                                      Director-General
4  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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