Today I spoke to Steve Holland, Brenntag Europe's CEO. He assured me the investigation (see earlier entry) is routine. He said the jv had been approved by competition authorities which now want to check that it meets the latest regulations.
“When this jv was formed over 10 years ago it went to the German authorities for approval. They looked at it and said ‘that’s fine’," Holland said.
“Now, the Bundeskartellamt are looking at this kind of joint venture where the two shareholders are involved in the industry. We’re very happy that all our customers are being properly dealt with. And we don’t have an issue with the Bundeskartellamt asking if this is appropriate under the latest anti-competitive legislation.”
