Sonae gets green light from Brussels to buy Sonae Sierra
The European Commission approved Sonae's acquisition of Sonae Sierra, considering, under EU Competition Law, that the transaction represents no threat to free competition.
The European Commission (EC) approved on Friday Sonae’s acquisition of Sonae Sierra, ruling that the operation does not raise any problems in terms of competition as the Portuguese multinational already owned part of Sonae Sierra which operates in the real estate market.
On 14 July, Sonae announced it was going to bolster its stake in Sonae Sierra by buying 20% from British group Grosvenor for around €255 million.
Sonae Sierra manages shopping centres around the world and was owned by Sonae (50%) and Grosvenor (50%), so with Brussels’ blessing Sonae now has 70% of the company.
Sonae said the British group “will continue to be a strategic partner”, although it has the right to leave in the future as it is a minority shareholder”.
Sonae Sierra operates in 12 countries and has more than 9,300 contracts with store holders. More than 438 million people visited its shopping centres in 2017.
Source: Lusa
