EUROPEAN COMMISSION DG Competition

Only the English text is available and authentic.

REGULATION (EC) No 139/2004 MERGER PROCEDURE

Article 6(1)(b) NON-OPPOSITION Date: 18/08/2016

In electronic form on the EUR-Lex website under document number 32016M8114

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 18.8.2016 C(2016) 5429 final

PUBLIC VERSION

SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE

To the notifying party

Dear Sirs,

1.On 22 July 2016, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which the undertaking Cobepa SA (''Cobepa'', Belgium) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation control of the whole of JF Hillebrand AG (''JFH'', Germany), by way of purchase of shares.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

- for Cobepa: a privately-held investment company whose investment strategy is centred around two main types of investments: growth capital investments and buy-out transactions. Cobepa mainly seeks to pursue investment opportunities in Europe and North America.

- for JFH: the Group is composed of three specialised logistics companies: JF Hillebrand, a beverage logistics service provider; Satellite Logistics Group, a beer logistics service provider; and TransOcean, a bulk logistics service provider.

1OJ 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.

2OJ L 1, 3.1.1994, p. 3 (the 'EEA Agreement').

3Publication in the Official Journal of the European Union No C 280, 02.08.2016, p. 5.

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.

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.

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

4OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

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