Mergers: Commission approves acquisition of Hamburg Süd by Maersk Line, subject to conditions

On 10 April 2017, the European Commission approved the acquisition of container liner shipping company Hamburg Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft KG (HSDG) of Germany by Maersk Line A/S of Denmark, subject to EU merger regulation conditions.

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: "Competitive shipping services are essential for European companies and for the EU's economy as a whole. The commitments offered by Maersk Line and HSDG will maintain a healthy level of competition to the benefit of the very many EU companies that depend on these container shipping services."

Maersk Line is the largest container shipping company, while HSDG is number nine worldwide. Like several other carriers, Maersk Line and HSDG offer their services on trade routes through cooperation agreements with other shipping companies. These are known as "consortia" or "alliances" and are based on vessel sharing agreements where members decide jointly on capacity setting, scheduling and ports of call, which are all important parameters of competition.

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