EU action over GE-Alstom deal a 'very ordinary event' - Vestager

By Foo Yun Chee and Jean-Baptiste Vey

PARIS (Reuters) - The European Commission's statement of objections to General Electric's (GE.N) plan to buy Alstom's (ALSO.PA) power turbines arm is a "very ordinary event", European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in Paris on Monday.

Shares in Alstom six percent last week after Reuters reported news of the commission's move, which could result in GE having to sell parts of the business or make other concessions on antitrust grounds. GE confirmed receipt of the statement of objections on Friday and said it was working with the commission to find potential remedies.

On Monday, Alstom was only gainer in the CAC40 index early on Monday, up 0.34 percent.

"We will not discuss what we will discuss, Vestager told reporters who asked her about the issue. "I will not discuss open cases in the media. It is quite common for us to do a statement of objections at this stage. One good thing about a statement of objections is that we put in writing our concerns. For us, it is a very ordinary event."

Vestager was in Paris for a conference on competition which was also attended by French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron, whose government backed the deal after introducing some of its own modifications.

Macron, asked about the same subject, said "Things are far from being settled, it's not an easy case. But the significance for world markets is an important element". He also noted that most of the competitors of the combined group would be Chinese.

GE's planned 12.4 billion euro ($14 billion) purchase of Alstom's power equipment business, the biggest deal in its history, is a key element of its expansion into industrial products and away from finance.

($1 = 0.8892 euros)

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee and Jean-Baptiste Vey; Writing by Andrew Callus; Editing by Geert de Clercq)