CELEX: 32021M10067
Language: en
Date: 2021-02-18 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 18/02/2021 declaring a concentration to be compatible with the common market (Case No COMP/M.10067 - ELRINGKLINGER / PLASTIC OMNIUM NEW ENERGIES / EKPO FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGIES / ELRINGKLINGER FUELCELL SYSTEMS AUSTRIA) according to Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (Only the English text is authentic)

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
                                                                Brussels, 18.2.2021
                                                                C(2021) 1210 final
                                                                                 PUBLIC VERSION
                                                                ElringKlinger AG
                                                                Max-Eyth-Strasse 2,
                                                                72581 ‒ Dettingen/Erms
                                                                Germany
                                                                Plastic Omnium New Energies S.A.
                                                                Rue de la Fusée 98-100
                                                                1130 ‒ Bruxelles
                                                                Belgium
Subject:        Case M.10067 — ElringKlinger/Plastic Omnium New Energies/EKPO Fuel
                Cell Technologies/ElringKlinger Fuelcell Systems Austria
                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 27 January 2021, the European Commission received notification of a proposed
        concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which the undertakings
        ElringKlinger AG (“EK”, Germany) and Plastic Omnium New Energies S.A. (“PO
        NE”, Belgium), belonging to the Compagnie Plastic Omnium SE group (“PO”, France),
        a subsidiary of Burelle SA (France), acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) and
        3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control of the whole of EKPO Fuel Cell
        Technologies GmbH (“EKPO”, Germany), and PO NE acquires within the meaning of
        Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation sole control of the whole of ElringKlinger
        Fuelcell Systems Austria GmbH (“EKAT”, Austria). 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 39, 4.02.2021, p. 21.
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 EK: the ultimate parent company of the German ElringKlinger group, an
        automotive supplier with international operations, that specialises in lightweight
        solutions, emobility, sealing and shielding technology, tooling and engineering
        services,
       for PO NE: part of the PO group, which is an automotive supplier with international
        operations, offering exterior components (especially bumpers and front-end
        modules) on the one hand (intelligent exterior systems and HBPO divisions) as well
        as fuel storage and delivery systems (including tanks and filler pipes), high pressure
        storage systems and depollution systems on the other hand,
       for EKPO: the research and development, design, manufacturing and sale of
        hydrogen fuel cell stacks and related engineering services, fuel cell stack
        components (e.g. bipolar plates, media modules, sealing solutions) and assembled
        fuel cell stack modules primarily for the automotive industry defined as light
        vehicles (passenger cars and light commercial vehicles) and medium & heavy
        commercial vehicles (buses and trucks),
       for EKAT: specialised in the development of hydrogen fuel cell system solutions.
3. The proposed concentration is made of two interdependent transactions which have
   been notified and should be examined together because they are unitary in nature within
   the meaning of Section 1.5.2. of the Commission Consolidated Jurisdictional Notice
   under Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 on the control of concentrations between
   undertakings.4
4. 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 139/2004.5
5. 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 95, 16.4.2008, p. 1.
5  OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.
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