Daily News 30 / 07 / 2019 - Government World Magazine

Juncker Plan supports €50 million EIB loan for circular economy business in the Netherlands

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending Dutch company Boels Rental €50 million to acquire new vehicles, machinery and related equipment for its rental and leasing activities. The loan is guaranteed by the Juncker Plan’s European Fund for Strategic Investments, which allows the EIB Group to invest in more and often higher risk operations. Through a greater availability of the necessary machines, Boels supports a circular business model in which these machines are no longer bought, but leased or rented. Karmenu Vella, Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said: “I am pleased that the Juncker Plan is supporting a family business in the Netherlands which promotes the circular economy model. The rental and leasing industry offers a credible alternative to purchasing outright, which benefits both consumers and the environment. I encourage more companies with green business models to apply to the EIB for financing.” A press release is available here. As of July 2019, the Juncker Plan has mobilised €424 billion of additional investment, including €11.8 billion in the Netherlands. The Plan is currently supporting 967,000 small and medium businesses across Europe. (For more information: Annika Breidthardt – Tel.: +32 229 56153; Siobhan Millbright – Tel.: +32 229 57361)

Plateformes en ligne : entrée en vigueur de nouvelles règles européennes pour des échanges justes, équitables et transparents

Les nouvelles règles européennes visant à créer un environnement équitable, fiable et axé sur l’innovation pour les entreprises et les commerçants lors de l’utilisation de plates-formes en ligne – y compris les places de marché en ligne, les sites de réservation en ligne, les « app stores » et les moteurs de recherche -, entrent en vigueur demain. Les entreprises ont encore un an pour se préparer, les nouvelles règles devenant applicables à partir du 12 juillet 2020 et ce dans tous les États membres de l’UE. Le règlement dit « Platforms-to-Business » garantira que les entreprises proposant des biens et des services en Europe (soit un million d’entreprises) seront mieux informées des pratiques en ligne et s’appuieront sur des règles claires et des mécanismes efficaces de résolution des litiges, apportant plus d’équité et de transparence dans les interactions entre les plateformes en ligne et les entreprises. Cet ensemble unique de règles européennes établit des obligations pour les plateformes en ligne et les moteurs de recherche au sein du Marché unique, permettant aux entreprises de mieux comprendre leurs droits, notamment en ce qui concerne le classement dans les résultats de recherche, l’accès aux données et le règlement des litiges. Grâce à l’amélioration des principes de concurrence garantie par ces règles, les consommateurs bénéficieront d’un choix plus large de biens et de services, de meilleure qualité et à des prix plus bas. Le règlement constitue une première étape et fait partie des initiatives politiques actuelles de la Commission européenne en ce qui concerne la rapide croissance de l’économie des plateformes en ligne, et qui comprend un nouvel observatoire sur l’économie des plateformes en ligne visant notamment à surveiller la mise en œuvre des nouvelles règles. Le texte intégral du règlement dans toutes les langues officielles est disponible en ligne. Plus d’informations sur les nouvelles règles sont disponibles dans cette fiche d’informations et sur le site dédié au marché unique numérique. (Pour plus d’informations: Nathalie Vandystadt – Tél.: +32 229 67083; Johannes Bahrke – Tél.: +32 229 58615; Marietta Grammenou – Tél.: +32 229 83583)

Un an après la signature de la charte sur la sécurité des produits: les marchés en ligne doivent en faire davantage

Un an après s’être engagés à accélérer le retrait des produits dangereux vendus sur leurs sites,AliExpress, Amazon, eBay et Rakuten France ont remis à la Commission européenne un rapport établissant le bilan de leur engagement. Une cinquième entreprise, C-Discount, a annoncé aujourd’hui qu’elle souscrivait à la même charte. Le rapport montre que les quatre marchés en ligne utilisent de façon régulière le portail du système d’alerte rapide des produits dangereux (EU Safety Gate) pour retirer les produits dangereux de leurs sites web, et qu’ils ont retiré 87% des produits signalés par les autorités sous deux jours ouvrables. Vĕra Jourová, commissaire chargée de la justice, des consommateurs et de l’égalité des genres, a déclaré: « La charte sur la sécurité des produits fixe des standards élevés qui guident les marchés en ligne et leur permettent de développer la confiance de leurs clients. Les participants à la charte ont déjà pris un ensemble de mesures qui améliorent la protection des consommateurs, mais je leur demande d’en faire davantage, notamment en utilisant l’intelligence artificielle pour détecter les produits dangereux plus rapidement et en améliorant l’évaluation de leurs engagements. J’appelle d’autres acteurs du marché à rejoindre la charte. » Le rapport indique aussi que les entreprises peuvent encore améliorer leur activité en matière de sécurité des produits : en organisant plus d’actions de prévention, en alertant les vendeurs sur les risques encourus, en renforçant leur coopération avec les autorités de surveillance des marchés et en investissant dans les technologies détectant les produits dangereux en ligne. Par ailleurs, la Commission continuera son action pour convaincre d’autres entreprises à rejoindre la charte, notamment les médias sociaux, comme Facebook, afin de continuer d’améliorer la protection des consommateurs en ligne. Le rapport est disponible en ligne, ainsi que des informations sur la charte. (Pour plus d’informations: Christian Spahr – Tél.: +32 2 295 00 55, Mélanie Voin – Tél.: + 32 229 58659)

Mergers: Commission clears acquisition of sole control over Royal Reesink Group by Triton

The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint control of Royal Reesink B.V. and its subsidiaries (together “Royal Reesink Group”) of the Netherlands by Triton Fund V GP S.à.r.l. of Luxembourg, Triton Managers V Limited and TFF V Limited, both of Jersey (together referred to as “Triton Fund V”). The Royal Reesink Group is a distributor of branded machinery and equipment, namely machinery for agriculture and horticulture, landscape maintenance, material handling and civil engineering applications, as well as a distributor of hydraulic components and systems. Triton Fund V belongs to a group of independent European private equity funds managed and advised by the Triton group. The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition concerns because of its limited impact on the sectors for the distribution of branded machinery and equipment and of hydraulic component systems. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure. More information is available on the Commission’s competition website, in the public case register under the case number M.9428. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Maria Tsoni + 32 229 90526)

Mergers: Commission clears acquisition of Workforce by Elliot Group and Insight Group

The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint control over WorkForce Software, LLC (“WorkForce”) by Elliott Management Corporation (“Elliot Group”) and Insight Venture Management, LLC (“Insight Group”), all of the US. WorkForce is a provider of cloud-based workforce management solutions to enterprises and mid-sized organizations. Elliot Group and Insight Group are investment management firms. The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition concerns given that WorkForce has no, or negligible, actual or foreseen activities within the territory of the European Economic Area. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure. More information is available on the Commission’s competition website, in the public case register under the case number M.9442. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Maria Tsoni + 32 229 90526)

Mergers: Commission clears acquisition of Celgene by BMS

The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of Celgene Corporation (“Celgene”) by Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (“BMS”), both of the US. BMS and Celgene are both global pharmaceutical companies engaged in the development and commercialisation of innovative medicines. The transaction gives rise to horizontal overlaps between the two companies’ marketed and pipeline products in autoimmune diseases, oncology and fibrotic diseases. Following its market investigation, the Commission concluded that the proposed transaction would raise no competition concerns given the number of actual and potential competitors, and its limited impact on the European Economic Area markets. The transaction was examined under the normal merger review. More information is available on the Commission’s competition website, in the public case register under the case number M.9294. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Maria Tsoni + 32 229 90526)

State aid: Commission approves €5.6 million aid for Rostock airport in Germany

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, further operating aid of around €5.6 million to Rostock airport until 2024, following the prolongation of the rules on operating aid for small airports under the Aviation Guidelines until 2024. On 10 August 2018, the Commission decided that the initial operating aid of € 1.8 million until April 2019 wasin line with EU State aid rules. The small regional airport, which is operated by the 100% publicly-owned company Rostock-Laage-Güstrow GmbH, is located in the north German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In light of the recent insolvency of Germania and fly bmi, which caused a serious drop in passengers at the airport, the operating aid aims to keep the airport running in the medium-term, and the airport is expected to cover its costs as of 2024. In its assessment, the Commission found that the measure is in line with EU State aid rules, in particular the Aviation Guidelines, as it will contribute to improving connections of citizens and facilitating regional development in the region, without unduly distorting competition in the Single Market. More information will be available on the Commission’s competition website, in the public case register under the case number SA.53717 once confidentiality issues have been resolved. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Maria Tsoni + 32 229 90526)

State aid: Commission approves €27.4 million for multimodal platform in the Port of Galați

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, Romania’s plans to grant €27.4 million investment aid to the Port of Galați, the largest sea-river port in the country. In April 2019, Romania notified the Commission of its plan to grant investment aid to the Port of Galați. The project consists of building a new multimodal platform with a capacity of 150,000 TEU/year in the area called Port Bazinul Nou. The total investment cost amounts to €89.9 million. It will be co-financed by the Romanian State, regional funds allocated via the Large Infrastructure Operational Programme (LIOP) and private money coming from concessionaires of the platform, as well as directly by the Connecting Europe Facility, a key EU funding instrument. The project includes, in particular, the upgrading of the quay and the building of the required infrastructure for a modern intermodal terminal. The newly created logistic node will promote the shift from road transport to railway and inland waterways/maritime transport on the Rhine-Danube Trans-European Transport corridor, fulfilling an objective of EU common interest. The Commission also found that the aid was necessary, proportionate and that the distortion of competition will be limited, given the relatively small-to-medium size of the Port of Galați, with limited transport volumes at EU level. Furthermore, according to traffic growth forecasts, the slight capacity increase created by the project would be offset by the increase in demand, mainly stemming from other road based flows transport routes on the Rhine-Danube territory. On this basis, the Commission concluded that the investment aid is compatible with EU rules, which allow State aid for the development of certain economic activities, provided that it does not unduly affect trade and competition in the Single Market. More information will be available on the Commission’s competition website, in the public case register under the case number SA.40926. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Maria Tsoni + 32 229 90526)

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