The Rotterdam District Court annuls a ministerial merger licence for the acquisition of rival post operators granted on general interest grounds outweighing the expected restrictive effects on competition (Sandd / PostNL)

On 11 June 2020, the District Court of Rotterdam (‘District Court’) annulled the decision of the Minister of Economic Affairs & Climate (‘Minister’) to grant a licence for the acquisition of rival post operator Sandd by PostNL. This was the first time since the introduction of the Dutch Competition Act that the Minister used its power to grant a merger licence on the basis of compelling reasons of general interest outweighing the expected restrictive effects on competition. The approval of the acquisition was granted by the Minister following the earlier refusal by the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (‘ACM’) to approve the transaction. Background of the merger control case In February 2019, PostNL announced its intention to acquire rival postal operator Sandd. In view of