Germany’s independent competition watchdog, the Bundeskartellamt, has raised “serious doubts” over the Siemens-Alstom railway merger. According to sources, a number of national competition authorities are opposing a merger that has full political backing from the French and German governments, saying it will create a ‘virtual monopoly’ in some European markets.
Alstom. Photo: Thierry Llansades / Flickr. Licence: CC BY-NC-ND
Photo: Thierry Llansades / Flickr. Licence: CC BY-NC-ND
In December, the Bundeskartellamt advised the European Commission that concessions offered by Siemens-Alstom were “neither suitable nor sufficient” to allay competition concerns in the signalling and high-speed train markets. Last week, it said these objections still stood. The case must be decided by the commission by 18 February.
Officials reviewing the deal have so far said it should be blocked. Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition commissioner, is unconvinced of any Chinese threat in the railway market for the foreseeable future and has warned Siemens-Alstom executives that more sell-offs will be needed if the deal is to be approved.
On Tuesday, the Commission’s top decision-making body will discuss the Siemens-Alstom merger before Mrs Vestager makes a formal recommendation on whether or not to approve the deal.
Bruno Le Maire, the French finance minister, has warned Brussels that applying “obsolete” competition rules to block the merger would be a “political mistake” leaving Europe weaker in the face of China. Paris has made clear that it would see a veto as an opportunity to overhaul the competition regime in the EU.
On the other hand, national competition authorities from Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK have all raised similar objections to those of the Bundeskartellamt. In December, Siemens and Alstom offered to sell off some of their older high-speed trains and signalling technology to secure EU approval for their merger, but for opponents this is still insufficient.
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