EU mergers and takeovers (March 18)

BRUSSELS, March 18 (Reuters) - The following are mergers under review by the European Commission and a brief guide to the EU merger process:

APPROVALS AND WITHDRAWALS

-- Ireland's Kendrick Investments Ltd to take sole control of Irish oil company Topaz Energy Group and Irish investment fund Resource Property Investment Fund Plc (approved March 11)

NEW LISTINGS

-- British engineering group John Wood WG.L and German peer Siemens SIEGn.DE to form a joint venture (notified March 17/deadline April 24)

-- Japanese spirits maker Suntory Holdings Ltd 2587.T to buy U.S. spirits company Beam Inc BEAM.N (notified March 17/deadline April 24)

-- U.S. cable company Liberty Global LBTYA.O to acquire Dutch peer Ziggo ZIGGO.AS (notified March 4/deadline April 23)

-- Australian investment fund AMP Capital Investors Ltd

Href="NewsSearch">AMPGCH.UL to acquire joint control of Luxembourg-based train leasing company Alpha Trains (Luxembourg) Holdings Sari (notified March 13/deadline April 22/simplified)

EXTENSIONS AND OTHER CHANGES

None

FIRST-STAGE REVIEWS BY DEADLINE

MARCH 18

-- British pension fund Universities Superannuation Scheme Limited (USS) to acquire 49.9 percent of British air traffic controller The Airline Group Ltd whose shareholders are British Airways ICAG.L , Easyjet EZJ.L and Monarch Airlines Href="NewsSearch">MONA.UL (notified Feb. 11/deadline March 18)

MARCH 25

-- U.S. agriculture machinery maker Agco Corp AGCO.N and GAZ, which is a unit of Russian car maker Basic Element, to set up a joint venture (notified Feb. 18/deadline March 25/simplified)

MARCH 26

-- South Korean holding company Lotte to acquire joint control of coffee maker Nestle Korea from Switzerland's Nestle

NESN.VX (notified Feb. 19/deadline March 26/simplified)

MARCH 27

-- French utility GDF Suez GSZ.PA , Omnes Capital and Predica Prevoyance Dialogue du Credit Agricole to acquire joint control of Futures Energies Investissements Holdings which is now solely controlled by GDF Suez (notified Feb. 20/deadline March 27/simplified)

-- Infrastructure operator Global Via Infraestructuras, which is 50 percent owned by Spanish bank Bankia, and LBEIP, which is a subsidiary of British lender Lloyds Bank LLOY.L to acquire joint control of Spanish hospital operator OHL Phunciona (notified Feb. 20/deadline March 27/simplified)

APRIL 4

-- Mexican cement producer Cemex CMXCPO.MX to acquire Swiss peer Holcim's HOLN.VX Spanish cement business (notified Feb. 28/deadline April 4)

APRIL 7

-- U.S. investment firm The Gores Group to acquire British grocer Premier Foods' PFD.L Hovis unit (notified March 3/deadline April 7/simplified)

APRIL 8

-- U.S. media company Discovery Communications DISCA.O to acquire a controlling interest in European sports broadcaster Eurosport International from French media group TF1 TFFP.PA (notified March 4/deadline April 8)

APRIL 9

-- Israeli conglomerate Ben-Moshe Group and Dolphin Fund to acquire Israel group IDB Development Corp Ltd (notified March 5/deadline April 9/simplified)

-- Dutch company Varo Energy, which is controlled by the Carlyle Group, to acquire assets from Austrian oil group OMV

OMVV.VI (notified March 5/deadline April 9/simplified)

APRIL 10

-- Japanese chemicals producer Kuraray 3405.T to buy U.S. peer DuPont's glass laminating solutions business (notified March 6/deadline April 10)

-- Sale by Britain's Royal Bank of Scotland RBS.L of some structured retail investor products and equity derivatives businesses to France's BNP Paribas BNPP.PA (notified March 6/deadline April 10)

APRIL 11

-- Carlyle Group CG.O to buy Illinois Tool Works Inc's

ITW.N industrial packaging unit for $3.2 billion (notified March 7/deadline April 11/simplified)

APRIL 15

-- Deutsche Telekom DTEGn.DE to acquire control of GTS Central Europe from a consortium of international private equity firms (notified March 11/deadline April 15)

MAY 2

-- Swiss cement maker Holcim HOLN.VX to buy some of Mexican peer Cemex's assets in Europe CMXCPO.MX CX.N . (notified Sept. 3/deadline extended for the second time to May 2 from March 31)

MAY 14

-- Spanish telecoms provider Telefonica TEF.MC to buy Dutch peer KPN's KPN.AS German unit (notified Oct. 31/Commission opened in-depth probe on Dec. 20, new deadline May 14)

MAY 16

-- Switzerland-based INEOS and Belgian chemicals company Solvay SOLB.BR to form a joint venture (notified Sept. 16/deadline extended to May 16 after additional concessions offered)

MAY 19

-- Hutchison 3G UK 0013.HK to acquire Telefonica Ireland, a unit of Spanish telecoms provider Telefonica TEF.MC (notified Oct. 1/deadline extended for the second time to May 19 from April 24 after Hutchison offered concessions)

JULY 22

-- U.S. chemical maker Huntsman Corp HUN.N to acquire U.S. peer Rockwood Holdings's titanium dioxide pigments business (notified Jan. 29/deadline extended to July 22 from March 5 after the European Commission opened an in-depth probe)

GUIDE TO EU MERGER PROCESS

DEADLINES:

The European Commission has 25 working days after a deal is filed for a first-stage review. It may extend that by 10 working days to 35 working days, to consider either a company's proposed remedies or an EU member state's request to handle the case.

Most mergers win approval but occasionally the Commission opens a detailed second-stage investigation for up to 90 additional working days, which it may extend to 105 working days.

SIMPLIFIED:

Under the simplified procedure, the Commission announces the clearance of uncontroversial first-stage mergers without giving any reason for its decision. Cases may be reclassified as non-simplified -- that is, ordinary first-stage reviews -- until they are approved.

(Editing by Foo Yun Chee)

((brussels.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com)(+32-2-287-6830))

Keywords: EU MERGERS/TAKEOVERS