Description of Activities

Description: The Commission resolved to approve without conditions the acquisition by Isotope Bidco Limited (“Isotope”) of all the issued ordinary shares in Intertek Group Plc (“Intertek”) by way of a Court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement under Part 26 of the UK Companies Act 2006. Upon implementation of the merger, Isotope will solely control Intertek.

Acquiring group: The primary acquiring undertaking is Isotope, which is a private limited company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales. Isotope is a newly formed special purpose acquisition vehicle, with no existing operations, and was formed solely for purposes of this transaction. Isotope is controlled by EQT X, which is solely controlled by EQT Fund Management S.à r.l., in turn wholly owned by EQT AB (publ), a company incorporated under the laws of Sweden. The acquiring group controls portfolio companies that are active globally across a variety of industries and sectors, including consumer, energy and environment, healthcare, real estate, services, social, technology, transportation and logistics. In Namibia, the acquiring group controls portfolio companies that are active mainly in the following technology sectors:  (i) the provision of software for cybersecurity; (ii) data protection and endpoint management solutions; (iii) supply chain risk management; (iv) soundtrack content; (v) digital visual content; (vi) cloud enterprise; (vii) open-source infrastructure; and (viii) application programming interface management. Other portfolio companies active in Namibia provide assorted services such as fruit breeding, hearing aid products, assessment, and professional examination services.

Target undertaking: The target undertaking is Intertek, a public limited company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales. Intertek is listed on the Main Market, a market operated by the London Stock Exchange under the ticker ITRK. Intertek is a global provider of assurance, testing, inspection, and certification services (“ATIC services”) across industries. In Namibia, Intertek provides ATIC services to several large customers, including mining houses and global energy companies, through Intertek Testing Services. 

Relevant market: Defined the relevant market to be the market for the provision of assurance, testing, inspection, and certification services (“ATIC services”) in Namibia.

Merger Determination

The Commission found the proposed transaction unlikely to result in the prevention or substantial lessening of competition or result in any undertaking to acquire or strengthen a dominant position in the market and did not raise any public interest concerns.

Mergers determination no.7 of 2026