CELEX: 32016M7890
Language: en
Date: 2016-01-27 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 27/01/2016 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.7890 - LA COMPAGNIE DES CARTES CARBURANT (EDENRED) / UNION TANK ECKSTEIN) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

|[pic]                             |EUROPEAN COMMISSION                                                                                      |

                                        Brussels, 27.1.2016
                                        C(2016) 541 final

                                        [pic]

|To the notifying parties:                                              |

Dear Sirs,

Subject:    Case M.7890 - LA COMPAGNIE DES CARTES CARBURANT (EDENRED) / UNION TANK ECKSTEIN
         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 5 January 2016, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger  Regulation
    by which the undertakings La Compagnie des Cartes Carburant (“LCCC”, France), jointly controlled by the  undertaking  Edenred  (France)  and
    private individuals, and UNION TANK Eckstein (“UTA”, Germany), jointly controlled by Edenred and Hermes Mineralöl-GmbH  (“Hermes”,  Germany)
    and Familien-Gesellshaft Eckstein mbH Verwaltungs-KG (“Eckstein”, Germany), each acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) and  3(4)  of
    the  Merger Regulation joint control of a newly created company constituting a joint venture (the  “JV”,  France)  by  way  of  purchase  of
    shares.[3]

 2. The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

      – Edenred provides prepaid corporate services with respect to employee benefits, expense management, incentives and rewards and  management
        of public social programs at global level;

      – LCCC issues and resells fuel and service cards for customers active in commercial goods transport and passenger transport in France;

      – UTA issues fuel and service cards for customers active in commercial goods transport and passengers transport in Europe;

      – Hermes and Eckstein: family-owned holding companies without business operations;

      – the JV will design, process and operate corporate fuel, toll and parking cards in France

 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(c) 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)
                                        Johannes LAITENBERGER
                                        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 011, 14.1.2016, p. 3.

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

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                                                                  PUBLIC VERSION

                                                           SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE