Daily News 03 / 08 / 2022

Pénurie d'eau : la Commission donne des conseils sur la réutilisation de l'eau dans le secteur agricole

La Commission a publié aujourd'hui des lignes directrices pour aider les autorités nationales et les entreprises concernées à appliquer les règles de l'UE relatives à la réutilisation en toute sécurité des eaux usées urbaines traitées pour l'irrigation agricole. L'Europe souffrant de plus en plus de sécheresses, la réutilisation de l'eau devient cruciale afin de garantir une source supplémentaire d'eau sûre et prévisible, tout en réduisant la pression sur les plans d'eau et en aidant l'UE à s'adapter au changement climatique. Le commissaire à l'environnement, à la pêche et aux océans, Virginijus Sinkevičius, a déclaré : « Les ressources en eau douce sont rares et de plus en plus tendues. En ces temps de pics de température sans précédent, il est de notre devoir de cesser de gaspiller l'eau et d'utiliser cette ressource plus efficacement pour nous adapter au changement climatique et garantir la sécurité et la durabilité de notre approvisionnement agricole. Les lignes directrices adoptées aujourd'hui peuvent nous aider à y parvenir et à garantir la circulation en toute sécurité, dans toute l'Union européenne, des produits alimentaires cultivés avec de l'eau recyclée. » Le règlement sur la réutilisation de l'eau, applicable dès juin 2023, définit des exigences minimales en matière de qualité de l'eau, de gestion des risques et de surveillance afin que la réutilisation de l'eau soit sûre. Elle permet de limiter la pression sur les eaux de surface et les eaux souterraines, ainsi que de promouvoir une gestion plus efficace de l'eau, conformément aux objectifs du Pacte vert européen. De même, la récente proposition de la Commission visant à réviser la directive sur les émissions industrielles encourage également une consommation d'eau plus efficace dans tous les processus industriels, notamment par la réutilisation de l'eau. La prochaine proposition de la Commission appelant à réviser la directive sur le traitement des eaux urbaines usées aura également pour objectif de faciliter la réutilisation de l'eau. De plus amples informations sont disponibles ici. (Pour plus d'informations : Adalbert Jahnz - Tél : +32 229 53156 ; Anna Wartberger - Tél : +32 229 82504)

Migration management: Commission awards funding for new projects to support reception, asylum and return systems in Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Italy and Poland

The European Commission has awarded today €171 million for projects to support the reception, asylum and return systems in Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Italy and Poland. This is the result of a competitive call launched in the beginning of 2022 to fund projects in Member States under pressure, under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund.  The support to Cyprus will go to the construction of an accommodation and pre-departure centres in the Menoyia area, in Larnaka. In Spain, it will be dedicated to the reinforcement of the capacity of the reception system in Ceuta and in Canary islands, contributing to mitigate their reception capacity overload stemming from the increased migratory pressure. The project of Italy will focus on strengthening the capacity of the reception system from arrival to all phases of reception, to protect and care for the most vulnerable refugee children and women. The financial support to international organisations in Greece will contribute to improving the quality of protection assistance to asylum seekers hosted within the reception system. It will have a particular focus on individualized management of people being in a situation of vulnerability, as well as on providing support for education to the school-aged refugee children in Greece. Lastly, the award to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Poland will focus on strengthening a rights-based and protection sensitive approach to the provision of direct assistance and improving return procedures. New calls might be programmed under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) budget 2023. More information on the funding opportunities can be found here. (For more information: Anitta Hipper - Tel.: +32 229 85691; Isabel Otero Barderas – Tel.: +32 229-66925) 

Mergers: Commission approves D'Ieteren's acquisition of PHE, subject to conditions

The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, D'Ieteren's acquisition of PHE. The approval is conditional on full compliance with commitments offered by D'Ieteren. Given Carglass's leading position in the French market for the provision of vehicle glass repair and replacement services, the Commission had concerns that the transaction would have reduced competition in vehicle glass repair and replacement services in France. The Commission's investigation showed that the transaction would have resulted in an entity combining the market leader and an unavoidable trading partner for many insurers (Carglass) with its closest competitor (Mondial Pare-Brise) and another close competitor (Glass Auto Service). For these reasons, post-transaction, insurers would not be able to redirect a significant portion of their business to other specialist networks, different from the ones involved in the transaction. Furthermore, this market is characterised by high barriers to entry, due to the time and expense needed to develop a nationwide network. To address the Commission's competition concerns, D'Ieteren offered to divest Mondial Pare-Brise and the Glass Auto Service label in their entirety. Following the market test, the Commission therefore concluded that the transaction, as modified by the commitments, would no longer raise competition concerns. The decision is conditional upon full compliance with the commitments. Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: “More than 90% of French motorists buy glass breakage insurance, and more than 3 million windshields are repaired each year. Lack of competition on this market could therefore result in higher insurance premiums for all consumers. D'Ieteren and PHE are both leading providers of vehicle glass repair and replacement services in France. With the divestments approved today, the parties will be able to bring together their activities in the automobile repair and spare parts sectors, while ensuring that the transaction will not have a harmful impact on French motorists.” A press release is available online. (For more information: Arianna Podesta – Tel.: +32 229 87024; Nina Ferreira - Tel.: +32 229 98163)

Mergers: Commission clears acquisition of CitiusTech by Bain Capital and BPEA

The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint control of CitiusTech Healthcare B.V. of the Netherlands (‘CitiusTech'), by Bain Capital Investors L.L.C. of the US, and Baring Private Equity Asia (‘BPEA') of Hong Kong and Singapore. CitiusTech is the holding company of CitiusTech Healthcare Technology Private Limited, an India-based healthcare technology services and solutions provider. Bain Capital is a private equity investment firm that invests in companies across a number of industries. BPEA is an Asian private firm managing a private equity investment program. The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition concerns, given CitiusTech limited actual or foreseen activities in the European Economic Area. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure. More information is available on the Commission's competition website, in the public case register under the case number M.10784. (For more information: Arianna Podesta – Tel.: +32 229 87024; Nina Ferreira - Tel.: +32 229 98163)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Cambodia: High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell to meet ASEAN partners

From 3 to 5 August, High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell will visit Cambodia for the annual Ministerial Meeting between the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), as well as the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Ministerial Meeting, and for holding a number a bilateral meetings. During his visit, the High Representative will meet Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen, as well as Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, who is also the Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair on Myanmar. High Representative/Vice-President Borrell will have additional bilateral meetings with other ASEAN and international interlocutors. This year marks the 45^th anniversary of the partnership between the EU and ASEAN. For more information, check the press release. Audiovisual coverage of the mission will be available on EbS. Follow also @JosepBorrellF and @eu_eeas on Twitter. (For more information: Nabila Massrali – Tel.: +32 229 88093; Xavier Cifre Quatresols – Tel.: +32 229 73582)

Liste des points prévus à l'ordre du jour des prochaines réunions de la Commission

Veuillez noter que ces informations sont données sous réserve de modifications.

Prochains événements de la Commission européenne

Eurostat: communiqués de presse