Accelerate Property Fund Limited and Another v Redevelopment of Fourways Mall, Fourways View and Fourways Game (LM100Aug15) [2015] ZACT 80 (6 November 2015)

Accelerate Property Fund Limited and Another v Redevelopment of Fourways Mall, Fourways View and Fourways Game (LM100Aug15) [2015] ZACT 80 (6 November 2015)

The Tribunal found that there is no horizontal overlap between Azrapart and the Target Properties, as Azrapart is a newly incorporated entity focused on redevelopment. The Target Properties are already owned by Accelerate. The Commission's investigation revealed that the merged entity's market share would remain within competitive bounds, with significant constraints from other retail centres in the vicinity. No evidence was presented of any adverse impact on employment or other public interest concerns. Accordingly, the Tribunal concluded that the proposed transaction is unlikely to substantially prevent or lessen competition in any relevant market and raises no public interest issues....

Citation
[2015] ZACT 80
Parties
Applicant: Accelerate Property Fund Limited; Applicant: Azrapart Proprietary Limited; Respondent: The Redevelopment of Fourways Mall, Fourways View and Fourways Game
Court
Competition Tribunal
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
6 November 2015
Case Number
LM100Aug15
Procedural Posture
Merger Application / Approval
Outcome
Merger approved unconditionally.
Judges
Norman Manoim, Anton Roskam, Fiona Tregenna
Legal Topics
Merger Control, Retail Property Market, Market Share Analysis, Public Interest, Horizontal Overlap
Competition Law Commercial and Corporate Merger Control Retail Property Market Market Share Analysis Public Interest Horizontal Overlap

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Parties

Accelerate Property Fund Limited

Applicant

Azrapart Proprietary Limited

Applicant

The Redevelopment of Fourways Mall, Fourways View and Fourways Game

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Merger Application / Approval

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the proposed merger will substantially prevent or lessen competition in any relevant market.
  2. 2 Whether the transaction raises any public interest concerns, including adverse impact on employment.
  3. 3 Whether there is any horizontal overlap between the acquiring firms and the target properties.

Ratio Decidendi

The Tribunal found that there is no horizontal overlap between Azrapart and the Target Properties, as Azrapart is a newly incorporated entity focused on redevelopment. The Target Properties are already owned by Accelerate. The Commission's investigation revealed that the merged entity's market share would remain within competitive bounds, with significant constraints from other retail centres in the vicinity. No evidence was presented of any adverse impact on employment or other public interest concerns. Accordingly, the Tribunal concluded that the proposed transaction is unlikely to substantially prevent or lessen competition in any relevant market and raises no public interest issues....

Court Disposition

Merger approved unconditionally.

Orders

  • The proposed transaction is approved without conditions.