The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the creation of a joint venture, E-VITA GmbH, by Ceravis AG and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V. (‘Frauenhofer-Gesellschaft’), all of Germany.
The joint venture will market, use, distribute and develop electron technology for chemical-free seed treatment. Ceravis belongs to the Danish Agro Group of Denmark and is active in agricultural trade, as well as production of seeds and animal feed, primarily for farmers in northern Germany.
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft conducts application-oriented research as well as contract research for government agencies and the private sector. The Commission concluded that the proposed creation of a joint venture would raise no competition concerns, given the limited foreseen activities of E-VITA in the European Economic Area. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure.