EU Again Delays Review of Hyundai Heavy Industries-Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Merger

[Asia Economy Reporter Park So-yeon] The European Union (EU) is expected to delay the review results of the Hyundai Heavy Industries-Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) merger.

According to major foreign media reports on the 14th, the EU Commission recently temporarily suspended the merger review of Hyundai Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding.

The EU Commission had previously postponed the review twice due to reasons including the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Industry insiders expect that this measure will delay the decision deadline. The EU Commission resumed the review about two months after the last suspension.

The EU Commission postponed the review due to the impact of COVID-19 but resumed it on the 3rd, setting the deadline as September 3.

Last month, the EU Commission notified the Statement of Objections (SO), an interim report related to the merger review.

The report reportedly stated that concerns about competition restrictions were resolved in sectors such as tankers, container ships, and offshore plants, but issues in the gas carrier sector have not yet been fully resolved.

The Hyundai Heavy Industries Group applied for merger reviews in six countries, starting with the Korea Fair Trade Commission in July last year.

Applications were submitted to China, Kazakhstan, and Singapore, and in September, preliminary consultations began with Japan. In October, the first approval was received from Kazakhstan.