Clidet No. 383 (Pty) Ltd (being a joint venture between Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited and African Rainbow Minerals (Pty) Ltd) and The Free State Operations of AngloGold Limited (05/LM/Jan02) [2002] ZACT 14 (26 February 2002)

Clidet No. 383 (Pty) Ltd (being a joint venture between Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited and African Rainbow Minerals (Pty) Ltd) and The Free State Operations of AngloGold Limited (05/LM/Jan02) [2002] ZACT 14 (26 February 2002)

The Tribunal found that the relevant market is the production and marketing of gold bullion to the international market, where the price is set internationally and South African producers are price takers. The merger would not result in any party gaining the ability to influence the gold price or lessen competition, as the market is highly competitive and undifferentiated. The transaction would increase Harmony and ARM's productive capacity while AngloGold's decreases, but this does not raise competition concerns. Regarding public interest, the merger would result in fewer retrenchments than would have occurred had AngloGold retained the assets, and the remaining employees would have more...

Citation
[2002] ZACT 14
Parties
Applicant: Clidet No. 383 (Pty) Ltd (being a joint venture between Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited and African Rainbow Minerals (Pty) Ltd); Respondent: The Free State Operations of AngloGold Limited
Court
Competition Tribunal
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
26 February 2002
Case Number
05/LM/Jan02
Procedural Posture
Large Merger / Merger Clearance Approval
Outcome
Merger approved unconditionally.
Judges
D. Lewis, N. Manoim, C. Qunta
Legal Topics
Large Merger Review, Market Definition, Public Interest Employment, Unconditional Approval
Competition Law Commercial and Corporate Large Merger Review Market Definition Public Interest Employment Unconditional Approval

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Parties

Clidet No. 383 (Pty) Ltd (being a joint venture between Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited and African Rainbow Minerals (Pty) Ltd)

Applicant

The Free State Operations of AngloGold Limited

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Large Merger / Merger Clearance Approval

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the proposed merger would substantially lessen or prevent competition in the relevant market.
  2. 2 Whether the merger raises any significant public interest concerns, particularly regarding employment.

Ratio Decidendi

The Tribunal found that the relevant market is the production and marketing of gold bullion to the international market, where the price is set internationally and South African producers are price takers. The merger would not result in any party gaining the ability to influence the gold price or lessen competition, as the market is highly competitive and undifferentiated. The transaction would increase Harmony and ARM's productive capacity while AngloGold's decreases, but this does not raise competition concerns. Regarding public interest, the merger would result in fewer retrenchments than would have occurred had AngloGold retained the assets, and the remaining employees would have more...

Court Disposition

Merger approved unconditionally.

Orders

  • The merger between Clidet No. 383 (Pty) Ltd and the Free State Operations of AngloGold Limited is approved without conditions.