Italiana Petroli/Esso Phase 2 merger cleared by the Italian Competition Authority

Last August the Italian Competition Authority (“AGCM”) has cleared the Phase 2 merger Italiana Petroli S.p.A. (“IP”)/Esso. The object of this transaction was the acquisition by IP of all the assets owned by Esso regarding oil refining and supply of fuel in Italy. In the context of this merger, Lear has been appointed as sole economic consultant by IP with the purpose of assessing from an economic perspective the presence of any potential anticompetitive effects in the local markets affected by the acquisition, and whether the remedies proposed by the merging parties addressed the concerns raised by the AGCM.