Description of Activities

Description of transaction: The Commission resolved to approve with conditions the acquisition by Big K Holdings (UK) Limited of shares in Carbo Namibia (Proprietary) Limited. 

Acquiring group: The acquiring group does not conduct any business activities in Namibia. However, in the United Kingdom, the Acquiring group is a prime trading company of which its principal activity is the manufacturing, sales and distribution of charcoal and fuel products for consumers, sold through Supermarket chains and retailers. 

Target undertaking: The primary target undertaking, Carbo Namibia (Proprietary) Limited manufactures and sells bulk charcoal and charcoal briquettes in Namibia and to the acquiring undertaking for distribution in the United Kingdom and Europe.

Relevant market: The Secretariat looking at the activities of the merging parties defined the product market as the market for the production of fine charcoal.

Merger Determination

The Commission found the proposed transaction unlikely to result in the prevention or substantial lessening of competition or result in any undertaking acquiring or strengthening a dominant position in the market. However, the proposed merger did raise public interest concerns, especially employment and local beneficiation. Thus, the Secretariat approved the merger with employment and value addition conditions.

However, as stated under section 50 of the Act, this approval does not relieve parties from complying with any other mandatory statutory approvals that any of the parties to this merger must comply with under Namibian Laws.