Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and Peugeot maker PSA a lengthy EU antitrust investigation after refusing to offer concessions to allay EU antitrust concerns about their $50 billion merger, people knowledgeable with the matter said on Wednesday.
Fiat and PSA, which are seeking to form the world’s fourth-biggest automaker, were informed last week that their combined high market share in small vans was a concern for competition enforcers, other people knowledgeable with the matter had told Reuters.
The automakers had the time until Wednesday to put in concessions but did not do so, the sources stated. That will automatically result in a four-month-long investigation by the European Commission when it finishes its preliminary review on June 17.
The EU competition enforcer, Fiat Chrysler and PSA are yet to comment on the issue.
“It is a huge and complicate deal, we know how things work and so we knew that a full investigation was an option. Which by the way would not cause any delay to the time frame we face for the merger,” one of the sources stated.
Another source said if EU regulators have any issues, they should list them. The companies expect to finalize the deal in the first quarter of the next year.
