Irish Competition Authority Decisions

1. Notification was made by Outlandus on 30 September, l992 with a request for a certificate under Section 4(4) of the Competition Act, l99l or, in the event of a refusal by the Competition Authority to issue a certificate, a licence under Section 4(2) in respect of a lease between Outlandus and Tradlew Limited.

2. The notification concerns the lease relating to units 2, 5, 6 and 8 and areas adjacent in the Greystones Shopping Centre, Greystones, Co. Wicklow between Outlandus as landlord and Tradlew Limited as tenant.

3. Outlandus is an unlimited company and was the owner and landlord of the Greystones Shopping Centre. Tradlew Limited was engaged in the business of letting properties at shopping centres.

4. The notified lease was made on 15 March, l988 for a

term of 10,000 years from 1 January, l988. The restricted user clauses in the lease are as follows:

(a) Under clause 3.2(3) the tenant covenants with the landlord: "To keep those parts of the demised premises .......for the purposes of Retail Units and for offices only that part of the demised premises coloured brown as a shopping mall and that part of the demised premises coloured yellow and cross hatched and which shall not be built over as a service area and not without the Landlord's consent in writing which shall not be unreasonably withheld to use or permit or suffer the same or any part thereof to be used for any other purposes."

(b) Under clause 3.2(5) the tenant covenants with the landlord "Not to sell nor permit or suffer the sale of groceries, food or food products or other items sold in a supermarket in an area exceeding three thousand square feet in any one unit whether by itself or its successors in title any holding company, subsidiary company or associate company or by any of its Tenants, sub-Tenants or occupants in the Centre or otherwise."

(c) Under clause 14 of the Third Schedule the tenant covenants with the landlord "Not without the prior written consent of the Landlord to use permit or suffer the demised premises to be used in any way whatsoever for the sale or supply of beer, wine, spirits, liquors or other intoxicating liquor whether the same are sold or supplied for consumption on or off the demised premises."

In addition, there are a number of standard restrictive covenants and obligations in the lease.

5. The Authority considers that Outlandus and Tradlew Limited are undertakings and that the notified lease is an agreement between undertakings. The agreement has effect within the State.

6. The Authority considers that the notified agreement, and its restricted and exclusive user clauses and the other standard restrictive clauses and obligations, does not have the object or effect of preventing, restricting or distorting competition in trade in any goods or services in the State or in any part of the State, for the reasons given in the Notice of the Authority of 2 September, l993 in respect of shopping centre leases (Iris Oifigiuil of 10 September, l993, pp. 665-667). The Authority therefore considers that the notified agreement between Outlandus and Tradlew Limited does not offend against Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, l99l.

7. The Competition Authority has issued the following certificate:

The Competition Authority certifies that in its opinion, on the basis of the facts in its possession, the agreement between Outlandus and Tradlew Limited in relation to the lease of the premises at Greystones Shopping Centre, Greystones, Co. Wicklow notified under Section 7, on 30 September l992 (Notification No. CA/600/92E) does not offend against Section 4(1) of the Competition Act, l99l.

For the Competition Authority

Des Wall

Member

15 December 1993