Haldex/Knorr-Bremse: EC zooms in on trailer air disc brakes

14 June 2017 – The European Commission (EC) has zoomed in on air disc brakes (ADBs) for trailers as part of its market investigation of Haldex’s [STO:HLDX] and Knorr-Bremse’s planned merger, it is understood.

Some customer third parties to the Swedish-German brake system supplier deal sent back request for information (RFIs) to the EC last week, a lawyer following the situation said. The parties formally filed with the EC on 1 June following a lengthy pre-notification period, as reported. The EC may have sent separate RFIs to rival third parties and maybe also supplier third parties, the lawyer added.

The EC had questions relating to axles fitted with ADBs and actuators, it is understood, showing a particular focus on ADBs for trailers. In this segment the authority identified WABCO [NYSE:WBC] and Meritor [NYSE:MTOR] as main potential competitors of the parties and enquired about the existence of so-called ‘exit clauses’ in contracts with ADB suppliers.

In a different section of the RFI the EC asked whether companies purchased different types of actuators – a kind of relay device – together as a package, from the same supplier or separately.

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