Nidec, the Japanese electric motor company, has been cleared by the European Commission to re-acquire Secop’s Delta hermetic refrigeration compressor production line.
Nidec acquired Secop for €185m in 2017 but was forced to sell the refrigeration compressor company last year as part of the conditions imposed by the European Commission in its acquisition of compressor manufacturer Embraco.
When Secop’s new owners announced in October that it would close its domestic refrigeration compressor line in Fürstenfeld, Austria, Nidec stepped in.
The European Commission has now agreed to to waive the non-re-acquisition clause of the commitments with regard to the Delta line after carrying out a market investigation.
In a statement the Commission said: “The Commission’s investigation revealed that the structure of the relevant markets for variable speed and fixed speed refrigeration compressors for household applications has changed to such an extent that the absence of influence over the concerned part of the divestment business is no longer necessary to render Nidec’s acquisition of Embraco compatible with the internal market.”
