Mergers: Commission approves merger between Hapag Lloyd and CSAV in container liner shipping sector, subject to conditions

On the 11 September 2004, the European Commission cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed merger between Hapag Lloyd, a German shipping company with worldwide activities, and rival Compañia Sud Americana de Vapores S.A. ('CSAV') of Chile. The clearance is conditional upon the withdrawal of CSAV from two consortia on the trade between Northern Europe and the Caribbean and South America's West Coast, where the merged entity would have faced insufficient competitive constraint to avoid a risk of price raises.

The merger would create the fourth largest container liner shipping company worldwide, after Maersk, MSC and CMA CGM.