Court of Justice Upholds Verdict in ThyssenKrupp Tata Steel Merger

Luxembourg seated Court of Justice of European Union in a case T-584/19 between German steel maker Thyssenkrupp & European Commission judgment has upheld the European Commission's decision prohibiting the proposed merger between Thyssenkrupp & Tata Steel. The General Court rejects all the arguments raised by the undertaking and upholds the Commission's decision. An appeal, limited to points of law only, may be brought before the Court of Justice against the decision of the General Court within two months and ten days of notification of the decision. Thyssenkrupp & Tata Steel on 25 September 2018 had notified the European Commission, in accordance with the Merger Regulation, of their plan to acquire joint control of a newly created joint venture. The European Commission held that the proposed concentration raised serious doubts as to its compatibility with the internal market and decided to initiate an in-depth examination procedure. The proposal related primarily to metallic coated and laminated steel products for packaging and hot-dip galvanized steel products used in the automotive industry. The European Commission adopted a statement of objections by which it concluded, as a preliminary point, that the proposed merger transaction would result in a significant impediment to effective competition in a substantial part of the internal market. Following an exchange with the undertakings involved and after sending requests for information to a number of market players, including inter alia, competitors and customers, the European Commission declared, by decision of 11 June 2019, that the transaction was incompatible with the internal market and the European Economic Area. The European Commission considered that the transaction would result in a significant impediment to effective competition, in particular due to horizontal non-coordinated effects resulting from the elimination of an important competitive constraint. As a result, customers would have faced a reduction in the number of suppliers, as well as higher prices. According to the European Commission, the remedies proposed by Thyssenkrupp and Tata Steel did not address in a full and lasting manner the competition problems identified. Consequently, Thyssenkrupp brought an action before the General Court of the European Union for annulment of the decision.

Court of Justice Upholds Verdict in ThyssenKrupp Tata Steel Merger

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