EU's Korean Air-Asiana merger review yet to resume over 'missing information' in submitted remedies

An Asiana Airlines aircraft takes off at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, Oct. 30. Yonhap

Antitrust regulators of the European Union have yet to resume their review on deciding whether to approve a merger deal between Korean Air and Asiana Airlines despite the parties having submitted remedial measures against competition concerns nearly two weeks ago, according to informed sources Thursday.

In June, the European Commission (EC), the executive body of the EU, suspended its investigation into the proposed merger between Korea's two full-fledged carriers announced in 2020 due to the companies' failure to meet their deadline for providing corrective measures.

The EC has raised concerns that the 1.8 trillion-won ($1.37 billion) merger deal between Korean Air and Asiana may restrict competition in the markets for passenger and cargo air transport services between the EU and Korea.

In response, the companies on Nov. 2 decided to sell Asiana's cargo business and divest passenger flight routes to four European cities in order to win approval for the deal, and the measure was reported to the EC.

Yonhap News Agency, however, has learned that the EC's halted investigation has yet to be resumed for nearly two weeks since the submission of corrective measures earlier this month.

An industry source told Yonhap that the delay was due to "missing information" in the remedies submitted by the parties.

An EC spokesperson confirmed that the commission received the remedies on Nov. 3 (local time) but declined to elaborate when asked whether the review process has officially started.

"I am afraid we have nothing to add at this stage," the spokesperson said.

Members of the labor union at Asiana Airlines hold a press conference in Seoul to protest the company's merger deal with its larger rival Korean Air, Nov. 6. Yonhap

In November 2020, Korean Air signed the deal to acquire a controlling stake in Asiana to create the world's 10th-biggest airline by fleet.

Korean Air has so far received approval in 11 countries, including Britain, Australia and Singapore, but has yet to receive approval from three key markets: the EU, the United States and Japan.

A rejection of the deal by the EC would dampen the prospects of the merger deal, which has been pursued for the past three years.

Korean Air confirmed that the EC has yet to restart its official investigation and that it is "going through necessary procedures, including providing additional information," as requested by the commission.

"We anticipate that the EC will soon lift the 'stop the clock' mechanism and resume the evaluation," the company said in a statement sent to Yonhap. "We are actively cooperating to facilitate a prompt conclusion of the review process and will continue our efforts to ensure a swift resolution." (Yonhap)