Dominance hinders FCL

Press, 4 August 1987, Page 40

Dominance hinders FCL

PA Wellington The Commerce Commission has identified market dominance in kraft pulp, kraft packaging and paper board, fine papers and log utilisation as stumbling blocks in Fletcher Challenge, Ltd’s takeover proposal for NZ Forest Products. The Commission has confirmed that Fletcher Challenge’s application to take 100 per cent of Forest Products will not get first stage clearance. It will be treated in the same way as an earlier Fletcher Challenge applica-

tion to buy up to 35 per cent which the Commission said two weeks ago would require extended investigation. The 20-day period for the Commission’s initial investigation on the 10 per cent application would have expired next week. The Commission has now issued the parties with a draft determination which says there are significant competition issues to be addressed in both cases. The chairman, Mr John Collinge, said that because the issues surrounding both applications were similar it was quicker to deal with

them at once. He stressed that the determination was only a means of helping the Commission reach a decision after hearing ''from all interested parties. The Commission has set August 13 as the deadline for submissions on the determination, and August 19 and 20 as dates for a conference at which arguments for and against the applications will be put. The determination contains tentative findings that they would result in dominance in kraft, paper and log markets.