Antitrust UK apre inchiesta su Ryanair per quota in Aer Lingus


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Se la pallina è verde, di fronte al computer
OFT opens inquiry into Ryanair's stake in rival

By James Thompson
Saturday, 30 October 2010


The Office of Fair Trading has launched an investigation into whether Ryanair's purchase of shares in fellow Irish airline Aer Lingus more than four years ago could reduce competition for passengers in the UK.
Michael O'Leary, the chief executive of Ryanair, which holds a 29.82 stake in its low-cost rival, yesterday rejected the OFT's legal case and accused the watchdog of "wasting time or resources on what is clearly a non-existent issue".


The OFT will first seek to identify if it has jurisdiction to review the share purchase as a "relevant merger situation", including whether Ryanair has the ability to exercise "material influence" over the strategy of Aer Lingus as a result. Both airlines, although listed in Ireland, operate across the UK.
Ryanair, which now operates more than 1,100 routes across 26 countries, first started buying shares in Aer Lingus in September 2006 and a month later launched a takeover bid for the entire company. But the European Commission blocked the bid in June 2007. However, this July, the European General Court ruled that the EC did not have the ability to force Ryanair to divest its shares in Aer Lingus, which by September 2007 had grown to just under 30 per cent.
The case will centre on a four-month deadline to investigate a merger once it has ended or new material emerges. The watchdog argues that it does, as it was previously prevented from launching an inquiry until the European General Court's decision in July, under EC regulations. But Ryanair says the OFT had four months after the EC's ruling in June 2007 to investigate.
Aer Lingus said it "welcomed" the OFT's investigation.

TheIndipendent
 
Giorni fa FR aveva pubblicato questo sul suo sito:

29.10.10

OFT SHOULD CLOSE ITS 'OUT OF TIME' QUERY

RYANAIR CALLS ON OFT TO CLOSE ITS ‘OUT OF TIME’ QUERY

Ryanair today (29 Oct) confirmed that it was contacted over the past 4 weeks by the UK Office of Fair Trading (OFT) in relation to a query as to whether or not the OFT has jurisdiction to assess Ryanair’s minority (29%) stake in Aer Lingus, and whether this gives Ryanair any material influence or control over Aer Lingus’ policy.

Ryanair has made the following points to the OFT:
Even if the OFT had jurisdiction in this case back in June 2007 (as suggested then by Aer Lingus), then given the considerable passage of time, the OFT is now legally out of time and no longer has jurisdiction.
Both the EU Commission and (under appeal by Aer Lingus) the European Courts have already carried out detailed and extensive investigations into Ryanair’s minority shareholding, and have conclusively ruled that Ryanair lacks influence or control over Aer Lingus. EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes confirmed in June 2007 that:
“Since Ryanair is not in a position to exert de jure or de facto control over Aer Lingus the Commission is not in a position to require Ryanair to divest its minority shareholding - which is, by the way, not a controlling stake”.
This out of time query by the OFT, into a failed 2006 merger offer, between two non-UK companies (where the issue of influence and control has already been investigated and dismissed by the EU Commission and the EU Courts), sets an alarming precedent for all current and future mergers involving non UK companies. It would appear that the OFT, by now enquiring into this failed merger, some four years after it was launched, and over three years after it was prohibited by the EU Commission, intends to second guess or get involved in mergers involving non UK Companies long after they have already been approved or prohibited by the EU merger authorities, even when these queries only arise more than three years after the OFT’s own statutory deadline for jurisdiction has expired.


Ryanair’s Michael O’Leary said:

“We are surprised at this OFT query into a failed merger offer between two non UK companies, some four years after the offer, and some three years after the EU Commission has investigated and confirmed that Ryanair has no de jure or de facto control over Aer Lingus. We have asked our lawyers to liaise directly with the OFT to bring this out of time and unnecessary query to an early conclusion. Ryanair also calls on the OFT to close these queries without delay, and without wasting time or resources on what is clearly a non-existent issue over which the OFT clearly no longer has any jurisdiction.”
 
Non sono sicuro che si tratti della stessa inchiesta ma...

Ryanair must cut 'influential' Aer Lingus stake: inquiry

UK regulators have provisionally concluded that budget carrier Ryanair must cut its stake in Aer Lingus owing to avoid adverse effects on competition.

The Competition Commission says Ryanair's shareholding gives it the ability to "influence" the Irish flag-carrier's commercial policies and strategy.

It is proposing various potential remedies, including the sale of "all or part" of Ryanair's 29.8% stake.

Full sale would probably be an "effective" measure, the regulator says, but it is seeking views as to whether a partial sale - accompanied by other behavioural changes, depending on the size of the disposal - would be equally acceptable. But it is not proposing any solution which relies solely on behavioural measures.

In its inquiry the Competition Commission has ruled that Ryanair's shareholding "obstructs" Aer Lingus's ability to tie up with other airlines, in order to achieve synergy benefits and economies of scale.

It adds that Ryanair is able to "hinder" plans for Aer Lingus to issue shares and raise capital, and could also prevent the carrier from disposing of slots at London Heathrow.

Potential remedies, it states, include cutting Ryanair's effective voting power to less than 25%.

"While not giving it control over the day-to-day running of its rival, Ryanair's minority shareholding can influence the major strategic decisions that could be crucial to Aer Lingus's future as a competitive airline on these and other routes," says Competition Commission deputy chairman Simon Polito.

"We were particularly concerned about Ryanair's influence over Aer Lingus's ability to be acquired by, merge with, or acquire another airline."

Without Ryanair's shareholding, the regulator says, competition with Aer Lingus "might have been more intense", notably on routes between the UK and Ireland.

The Competition Commission is inviting comments before publishing its final report on 11 July.

Aer Lingus says it "welcomes" the decision while Ryanair, predictably, has attacked the regulator's ruling, describing the inquiry as "bogus and baseless" and insisting that the claim of influence contradicts other findings by the European Commission.

Ryanair says it will appeal to the UK Competition Appeals Tribunal and, if necessary, the courts. Chief executive Michael O'Leary says the decision is "bizarre and manifestly wrong". He cites Etihad Airways' shareholding in Aer Lingus as evidence that Ryanair is not a barrier to tie-ups.

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/ar...-influential-aer-lingus-stake-inquiry-386472/
 
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