Veolia ‘delighted’ at Commission’s Suez deal approval

UK ruling awaited

But Veolia, a French-headquartered global waste and resource management business, has confirmed that it is still awaiting a ruling from the competition authority in the UK. And, similiar examinations in Chile and Australia are also still underway.
To secure approval from the European Commission, Veolia had to put forward a package of measures to assuage competition concerns. It is now doing the same with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority. This is expected to cover the whole range of Veolia’s activities in the UK which span industrial services, through to local authority contracts and the operation of energy from waste plants.

The decision by the European Commission, announced yesterday (14 December), marks a “decisive step” in the merger process and means that within the European Union, Veolia will become a larger business, the company said.

Green light

The green light from the European Commission marks 15 out of the 18 approvals Veolia is seeking, the company noted.

Antoine Frérot, chairman and CEO of Veolia, commented: “I am delighted with this decision, which confirms the strength and the relevance of our industrial project and its ability to meet the challenges of the global climate and environmental crisis.

“This step opens the final phase of the merger, which is only a matter of weeks away. I am very much committed to ensure that it takes place under the best possible conditions for all our stakeholders and I will make sure that all our social commitments are respected throughout this process.”

Competition concerns

Veolia explained that it worked closely with the European Commission to address “all its competition concerns”.

This included reaching a commercial agreement between Veolia and the Consortium to create the “new Suez”, which has identified assets that remove most of the competition concerns identified by the European Commission.

With the sole condition precedent of the tender offer at a price of €19.85 per Suez share now fulfilled, the merger between Veolia and Suez will now enter its final phase.

The closing date of the takeover bid was set yesterday by the French Competition Authority AMF for January 7, 2022.