CELEX: 32015M7687
Language: en
Date: 2015-08-04 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 04/08/2015 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.7687 - NH / HNA / JV) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

|[pic]                             |EUROPEAN COMMISSION                                                                                      |

                                        Brussels, 4.8.2015
                                        C(2015) 5641 final

                                        [pic]

|To the notifying parties:                                              |                                                                       |

Dear Sir/Madam,

Subject:    Case M.7687 – NH/ HNA/ JV
         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 09 July 2015, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by
    which NH Hotel Group SA (‘NH’, Spain) and HNA Hospitality Group Co., Ltd (‘HNA’, China) acquire within the meaning of  Article  3(1)(b)  and
    3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control of the Joint Venture Beijing NH Grand China Hotel Management Co., Ltd (China).[3]

 2. The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

      – for NH: hospitality sector in Europe, America and Africa,

      – for HNA: aviation, financial, real estate, tourism and logistics industries. HNA is a major hotel management company  in  China  and  has
        also marginal activities in this sector in the EU.

 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(a) and 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)
                                        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 235, 18.7.2015, p. 4.

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

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                                                                  PUBLIC VERSION

                                                           SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE