The European Commission has said yes to French container line CMA CGM’s plan to buy German short sea shipping operator Oldenburg-Portugiesische Dampfschiffs-Rhederei (OPDR).
Both OPDR and CMA CGM (through its subsidiary MacAndrews) are active in intra-European short sea container shipping, including port-to-port and door-to-door services.
The EC concluded that the proposed take-over would raise no competition concerns due to a number of factors.
Firstly, the low switching costs for customers, as they can also use alternative means of transport, such as road or rail.
Secondly, the low barriers for nascent or existing competitors to enter or expand their services by adding new ships or new ports of call in the intra-EEA short-sea shipping market; and finally, the low overall size of the affected markets.
The deal was looked at under the Ordinary EU Merger Review Procedure.
OPDR owns and operates a fleet of eight container ships, as well as two 500 TEU/885lm Con/Ro ships.
The ten vessels operate on routes linking ports in North Europe, the Iberian Peninsula, the Canary Islands and Madeira, as well as Northern and Western Africa.
The company also owns about 10,000 containers.
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