SOLVAY/SODI (Conclusion of the Investigation)
PRESS RELEASE
The Italian Competition Authority concluded its investigation dealing with the acquisition by Solvay of Sodi, which was sold by the Bulgarian government.
The product concerned with the merger is the sodium carbonate, which is used as a catalyst in the manufacture of glass.
The Authority ruled that, even if the merger would lead to an increase in Solvay's production capacity and therefore, probably, in its market share, the operation did not seem to reduce competition substantially and on a lasting basis, under Section 6, subsection 1, of Law no. 287/90, in consideration of the commitments formally assumed by Solvay and the subsequent effects on market conditions.
Solvay is a multinational chemical and pharmaceutical company and recorded sales of 1,450 million lira in Italy in 1995. Today, the company has a dominant position in the market of sodium carbonate, while Sodi ranks second.
Sodi's entry into the Italian market was made easier by the imposition of an anti-dumping duty on imports from the USA in 1995, which drove FMC, an American company, from the market.
During the investigation, Solvay modified the terms of the examined merger. In particular, it sold a quota of shares in Sodi to the Turkish Sisecam, in addition to the right to dispose of 25 per cent of Sodi's production.
Further, Solvay and other European sodium producers, which hold a production share over 75% altogether, notified the European Commission that they did not deem it necessary to impose any longer the anti-dumping duty on sodium imports from the USA. In view of such commitments, the removal of anti-dumping duties on sodium imports from the USA, that will be able to be competitive in the Italian market again, is to be considered secure.