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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: 11/03/2016

In electronic form on the EUR-Lex website under document number 32016M7906

EUROPEAN COMMISSION

Brussels, 11.03.2016 C(2016) 1616 final

PUBLIC VERSION

SIMPLIFIED MERGER PROCEDURE

To the notifying party:

Dear Sirs,

1.On 16 February 2016, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of the Merger Regulation by which the Equistone Partners Europe SAS ("EPE", France) controlled by Equistone LLP (UK) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation control of the whole of Financière Mecaplast SAS (“Financière Mecaplast”, France) and indirectly of its 100% held subsidiary Mecaplast SAM (“Mecaplast”, France) and all of the latter’s subsidiaries, together the “Mecaplast Group” by way of purchase of shares.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

- Mecaplast Group is active in the manufacture and supply of automotive component.

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 074, 26.02.2016, p. 23.

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.

 EPE is an investment firm mainly active in medium-sized companies, with a portfolio spanning in a number of industries.

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(b) of the Commission Notice on a simplified procedure for treatment of certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004.

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) Johannes LAITENBERGER Director-General

OJ C 366, 14.12.2013, p. 5.

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