Black Watchdog Buys Amsterdam Waste Disposer AEB

The Dutch Consumer Market Authority (ACM) has banned waste management company AfbarProcessing Rheinmond from buying Amsterdam waste disposal company AEB. ACM said a successful takeover could create an overpowered company, driving up prices and raising the cost of treating household waste.

“Especially the municipalities of North-Holland, South-Holland and Utrecht will have to pay even more after the merger of these companies,” said ACM Board Chairman Martijn Snoep. He explained that there are not enough alternatives to AEB and AVR in the western part of the country. “And it costs more to transport household waste to faraway landfills, so the combination of AVR and AEB could increase the price of household waste disposal. In that case, the waste surcharge will rise for people in those municipalities.”

AVR previously bid 450 million euros for the Amsterdam company during a period of turmoil. In 2019, due to issues such as maintenance delays and internal disputes, the company had to shut down four of its six incinerators, causing waste not only from customers in Amsterdam but also from other parts of Amsterdam. It was in such a predicament that a storage storehouse was created. Country. The city provided financial support several times to keep AEB alive and eventually decided to put the company up for sale.

Amsterdam city councilor Reyniel van Danzig said he was disappointed by the sport watchdog’s decision. “Of course, this is also very frustrating for AEB and its employees, as a result and because the future of AEB is once again uncertain,” he said in a letter to the capital city council. rice field. The municipality disagrees with ACM’s reasoning. But while AVR could still technically appeal, the appeal would not immediately block the ACM’s decision, he said. Therefore, the alderman said the deal would definitely not go through.

Van Dantzig now hopes to make a new decision about the future of the waste disposal company in the coming weeks. “As a result of the ACM’s decision, the choice is once again on whether the municipality wants to keep the AEB or sell it,” he explained. He also noted that residents of Amsterdam would not notice the change. AEB will continue to treat waste in the same manner as before, he said. The company’s heat supply to Westpoort Varmte remains unchanged.