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Johannesburg - The Competition Tribunal has granted a request by Japanese group Kansai Paint to suspend the merger condition requiring it to sell off the entire automotive coatings business of Freeworld Coatings [JSE:FWD] until the tribunal has made a ruling on Kansai's request to consider the merger.
The request followed the Competition Commission's approval earlier this year of Kansai's intermediate merger with Freeworld Coatings, on condition that Kansai divest the entire automotive business of Freeworld and adhere to certain public interest conditions.
Shortly after the commission's conditional approval of the deal on July 11, Kansai lodged a request for consideration with the tribunal in which Kansai requested it to consider the merger and approve it without the divestiture condition. This was granted on Friday.
According to Kansai, it would have been unduly prejudiced if it were required to implement the divestiture condition while this condition was still under consideration by the tribunal. However, Kansai had no objection to the public interest conditions imposed by the commission.
The commission did not oppose Kansai's request to suspend the merger condition.
The request followed the Competition Commission's approval earlier this year of Kansai's intermediate merger with Freeworld Coatings, on condition that Kansai divest the entire automotive business of Freeworld and adhere to certain public interest conditions.
Shortly after the commission's conditional approval of the deal on July 11, Kansai lodged a request for consideration with the tribunal in which Kansai requested it to consider the merger and approve it without the divestiture condition. This was granted on Friday.
According to Kansai, it would have been unduly prejudiced if it were required to implement the divestiture condition while this condition was still under consideration by the tribunal. However, Kansai had no objection to the public interest conditions imposed by the commission.
The commission did not oppose Kansai's request to suspend the merger condition.
