“The Competition Council is looking into the economic concentration operation whereby Carrefour Group is taking over the retail activity operated in Romania under the brand «Billa» of Rewe Group, Billa Romania SRL and Billa Invest Construct SRL,” the antitrust watchdog said in a statement.
German group Rewe will keep its other retail activities in Romania, focusing on the discount store network.
The transaction was initially notified to the European Commission, but Romania’s Competition Council was deemed the authority the most eligible to carry out an in-depth analysis of the markets on which Carrefour is strengthening its position after taking over Billa stores.
The Romanian antitrust watchdog will assess the economic concentration operation in terms of its compatibility with the normal competitive environment, in accordance with the regulation as regards clearing economic concentrations.
Carrefour is a member of French group Carrefour, which operates in over 30 countries. In Romania, Carrefour operates through hypermarket-type stores (Carrefour Hypermarket), supermarket-type units (Carrefour Market), as well as through convenience stores (Carrefour Express).
End-December 2015, Carrefour said it had signed an agreement with German group Rewe for the acquisition of Billa Romania, with a network of 86 supermarkets countrywide.