Europe Daily News, 04 December 2024

COMPETITION

• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11752 - OEP / Ethos Energy)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11625 - EPCG / IDS)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11779 - Oaktree / Apollo)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11569 - Deli Home / HWI / Houtwerf / Distri-Hout)
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11791 - HIG Capital / Thoma Bravo/ Certain Comptia Assets)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11672 - Adrill / ADH / EV)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11713 - Inter Ikea Systems / Ikea Baltics)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11778 - VREP / Südbg / Dekom / Dekom United)
• Commission clears acquisition of Nordic Paper by Strategic Value Partners (M.11773) - Midday Express
• Commission clears creation of joint venture by Patient Square and Carlyle (M.11798) - Midday Express
• Commission clears acquisition of BoxLinks by ONE and LXP (M.11731) - Midday Express
• Commission clears acquisition of EST by sennder (M.11742) - Midday Express
• Belgium - The Competition Authority approves the merger of a number of Flemish inter-municipal organisations
• Denmark - Danish Supreme Court: German engine manufacturer and Danish distributor infringed competition law
• Germany - Bundeskartellamt approves acquisition of Advanced Power Solutions by Energizer Group
• Romania - The Competition Council approved the takeover of 10 Tinos Farm S.R.L. Pharmacies by Mini Farms S.R.L.
• Romania - The Competition Council has cleared with conditions the transaction by which Delhaize "The Lion" Nederland B.V. (Mega Image) acquires Profi Rom Food S.R.L.

STATE AID

• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections – SA.103740, SA.114970 & SA.106581

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Judgment of the General Court of 04 December 2024 in Case T‑246/22, PGTEX Morocco, supported by LM Wind Power A/S, intervener, Vs. European Commission supported by Tech-Fab Europe eV
  Re: Subsidies – Extension of the definitive countervailing duty imposed on imports of certain woven or stitched glass fibre fabrics originating in China to imports of those products consigned from Morocco - Anti-circumvention investigation - Circumvention - Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement EC-Morocco - Article 33(a) of Regulation (EU) 2016/1037 - Misuse of powers – Conditions which must be met in order to establish circumvention - Article 23(3) of Regulation 2016/1037 - Change stemming from a practice, process or work for which there is insufficient due cause or economic justification other than the imposition of the duty - Assembly operations - Completion operations - Concept of ‘value added’ - Like imported product or parts of that product continuing to benefit from the subsidy - Error of law - Manifest error of assessment - Principle of non-discrimination - Equal treatment - Principle of good administration - Article 28(1) and (3) of Regulation 2016/1037 - Use of the facts available
• Judgment of the General Court of 04 December 2024 in Case T‑245/22, PGTEX Morocco, supported by LM Wind Power A/S, intervener, Vs. European Commission supported by Tech-Fab Europe eV
  Re: Dumping - Extension of the definitive anti-dumping duty imposed on imports of certain woven or stitched glass fibre fabrics originating in China to imports of those products consigned from Morocco - Anti-circumvention investigation - Circumvention - Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement EC-Morocco - Article 22(a) of Regulation (EU) 2016/1036 - Misuse of powers - Conditions which must be met in order to establish circumvention - Article 13 of Regulation 2016/1036 - Change stemming from a practice, process or work for which there is insufficient due cause or economic justification other than the imposition of the duty - Assembly operations - Completion operations - Concept of ‘value added’ - Like imported product or parts of that product continuing to benefit from the subsidy - Error of law - Manifest error of assessment - Principle of non-discrimination - Equal treatment - Principle of good administration - Article 18(1) and (3) of Regulation 2016/1036 - Use of the facts available
• Explanatory notes to the Combined Nomenclature of the European Union (0403 10 11 to 0403 10 99 Yogurt and 403 90 11 to 0403 90 99 Other)
• CBAM - updates as of 29 November 2024
  - Transitional CBAM Registry user manual for Declarants
  - Most important features for the Declarant Portal for release CBAM 1.3.1.3
  - Quarterly Report structure XSD and “stypes.xsd” (ZIP format & XLS format)
  - Quarterly Report sample file for representatives & for importers
• Council Decision (EU) 2024/2998 of 5 November 2024 on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union within the Joint Committee established by the Convention on a common transit procedure as regards the adoption of a decision amending Appendices III and IIIa to that Convention concerning the accession of Georgia
• WTO - Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade - Notification - European Union -Biocidal products : Formic acid
• As France stumbles, EU-Latin America trade talks enter endgame - EU trade chief is taking up the last sensitive items with his Mercosur counterparts to achieve a pact in the coming days - Politico.eu

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Agenda for: Working Party on Commodities (PROBA) - 13 December 2024
• Working Party on Technical Harmonisation (Safety of Toys)
  - Proposal for Regulation on the Safety of Toys: initial 4-column document

FINANCE

• Directive (EU) 2024/2994 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2024 amending Directives 2009/65/EC, 2013/36/EU and (EU) 2019/2034 as regards the treatment of concentration risk arising from exposures towards central counterparties and of counterparty risk in centrally cleared derivative transactions
• Regulation (EU) 2024/2987 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2024 amending Regulations (EU) No 648/2012, (EU) No 575/2013 and (EU) 2017/1131 as regards measures to mitigate excessive exposures to third-country central counterparties and improve the efficiency of Union clearing markets

ENERGY

• Agenda for: Working Party on Energy - 10 December 2024

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Meeting of the Council (Environment) on 17 December 2024
  - Update on Progress of Horizon Europe EU Missions as a tool for local climate action - Information from the Commission
• Agenda for: Meeting of the Standing Committee on Biocidal Products - 06 December 2024
• Agenda for: Meeting of the Committee for the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein - 05 December 2024
• EU to push for increased global cooperation at UNCCD COP16
• EU regrets inconclusive global plastics treaty
• Improving health and resilience of waters in Europe - See the EEA Report

DEFORESTATION

• EU deforestation law: Council and Parliament agree on its targeted amendment
• Commission welcomes provisional agreement on additional phase-in time for EU Deforestation Regulation
• EU agrees to delay anti-deforestation law by one year - But the EPP’s proposal to weaken the law failed, in a blow to the center-right group’s anti-red tape drive - Politico.eu

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Agenda for: Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) - WG on Nanomaterials in Cosmetic Products - 06 December 2024
• Agenda for: Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) - WG on Cosmetic Ingredients - 17 & 18 December 2024
• Main results of: Employment, Social Policy, Health & Consumer Affairs Council (Health), 3 December 2024
  - Cardiovascular health: Council calls for more robust efforts to help prevent cardiovascular diseases
  - Council recommends increased protection against second-hand smoke and aerosols
• Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2024/3010 of 29 November 2024 amending Council Directives 2002/55/EC and 2002/57/EC, and Commission Directive 93/61/EEC as regards the listing of pests of plants on seeds and other plant reproductive material

EFSA

• Scientific Opinion - Risk and protective factors for ASF in domestic pigs and wild boar in the EU, and mitigation measures for managing the disease in wild boar
• Scientific Opinion - Flavouring group evaluation 420 (FGE.420): Hesperetin dihydrochalcone

EMA

• Guidance on the electronic submission of information on investigational medicinal products for human use in the Extended EudraVigilance medicinal product dictionary (XEVMPD)
• EU Implementation Guide (IG) on veterinary medicines product data in the Union Product Database - Chapter 2: Format for the electronic submission of veterinary medicinal product information

DIGITAL & INFORMATION SOCIETY

• Meeting of the TTE Council (Telecommunications) - 06 December 2024
  - Better Digital Regulation for SMEs in the EU: take stock and take action - Information from the Netherlands, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Slovakia and Sweden
• Minutes of the 5th High-level Meeting of the European Semiconductor Board (E03932) - 02 October 2024
• Submarine cable system between Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands (GC-LNZ-FU Ring)
• Study for the Subsea Cable System connecting Portugal, Ireland and Spain (PISCES Cable System)
• Study to deploy new submarine cables in the Canary Islands (CANARY-SUBCAB)
• EU to crack down on Asian online retailers Temu and Shein - Brussels considering a tax to slow surge of goods sold on sites that evade custom duties and checks - Financial Times

DATA PRIVACY & CYBERSECURITY

• EDPB clarifies rules for data sharing with third country authorities and approves EU Data Protection Seal certification
  - Guidelines 02/2024 on Article 48 GDPR
• ENSIA - EU’s first ever report on the "state of cybersecurity" in the Union
• Commission launches Industry-Academia Network to bridge cybersecurity skills gap - Midday Express

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Revised Agenda for: Working Party of Foreign Relations Counsellors (RELEX) - Horizontal Questions - 05 December 2024
• Afghanistan: Statement by the Spokesperson on latest restrictions imposed by the Taliban on women and girls
• Republic of Korea: Statement by the Spokesperson on the recent developments