17.5.2011   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 146/13


Prior notification of a concentration

(Case COMP/M.6191 — Birla/Columbian Chemicals)

(Text with EEA relevance)

2011/C 146/07

1.

On 5 May 2011, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (1) by which the undertaking Indigold Carbon (The Netherlands) controlled by Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group (‘Birla’, India) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Merger Regulation control of the whole of the undertaking Columbian Chemicals Acquisition LLC and associated companies (‘Columbian Chemicals’, United States) by way of purchase of shares. The concentration has been referred to the Commission by the German national competition authority pursuant to Article 22 (3) of the Merger Regulation. The referral was subsequently joined by Spain, France and the United Kingdom.

2.

The business activities of the undertakings concerned are:

for Birla: production of aluminium and copper, viscose staple fibre, insulators, acrylic fibre, cement, fertilisers and carbon black,

for Columbian Chemicals: production of carbon black.

3.

On preliminary examination, the Commission finds that the notified transaction could fall within the scope the EC Merger Regulation. However, the final decision on this point is reserved.

4.

The Commission invites interested third parties to submit their possible observations on the proposed operation to the Commission.

Observations must reach the Commission not later than 10 days following the date of this publication. Observations can be sent to the Commission by fax (+32 22964301), by e-mail to COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu or by post, under reference number COMP/M.6191 — Birla/Columbian Chemicals, to the following address:

European Commission

Directorate-General for Competition

Merger Registry

J-70

1049 Bruxelles/Brussel

BELGIQUE/BELGIË


(1)  OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘EC Merger Regulation’).