Metrobus Ltd / FirstGroup in Orpington

OFT closed case: Completed acquisition by Metrobus Limited of the bus operations of FirstGroup in Orpington

Affected market: Scheduled passenger transport

No. ME/3447/07

Go-Ahead notified the OFT on 10 December 2007. The statutory deadline is 7 April 2007.

On the basis of the information available to it, the Office of Fair Trading has decided that the completed acquisition of the Orpington operations of First Centre West (part of First Group) by Metrobus Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group) does not qualify for investigation under the mergers provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 (the Act), because neither the UK turnover test nor the share of supply test in section 23 of the Act is met. A relevant merger situation has, therefore, not been created.

Published 18 January 2008