Smurfit Kappa Europe seeks anti-trust nod to buy Bulgaria’s Vitavel
February 20, 2019Paper and cardboard packaging company Smurfit Kappa Europe, part of London-listed Smurfit Kappa Group, said on Friday that it is seeking approval from Bulgaria’s anti-trust authority to acquire Lovech-based peer Vitavel.
The acquisition is likely to have an effect on the local corrugated fiberboard production market, as well as the corrugated fiberboard packaging segment, Smurfit Kappa Europe said in a notice to Bulgaria’s Commission for Protection of Competition.
Interested parties can submit their position to the regulator within seven days.
Smurfit Kappa Group operates in 21 countries in Europe and 12 countries in North and South America.
Bulgaria’s Vitavel Invest held an 84.9% stake in Vitavel at the end of 2016, according to the most recent commercial register data.
Vitavel ended 2016 with a slim loss of 365,000 levs ($210,000/187,000 euro), up from 238,000 levs in 2015. The company’s operating revenue increased to 12.7 million levs in 2016 from 12.4 million levs the year before.
