An official inquiry has been launched into Asda's completed £600m deal to buy the Co-op's petrol station business.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is now inviting comments on the transaction until the end of the month. A decision on the first phase of the inquiry is expected by March 14.
The watchdog first signalled it was looking into the deal in October 2022.
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The deal was completed towards the end of last year and saw 2,300 workers move over to the supermarket giant.
Asda is owned by the Lancashire-based billionaire Issa brothers and private equity firm TDR Capital.
In August 2022, the Co-op first revealed plans to sell its 132 petrol stations and attached convenience stores in a bid to bolster its finances.
The Co-op said proceeds from the sale will be reinvested into its core convenience shops, pricing, stores operations and reducing its debt burden.
In October, Asda said the CMA had already issued an initial enforcement order, meaning the Co-op sites must remain separate until any probe is completed.
At the time, the supermarket giant said the process is likely to "take until mid-2023".
In a statement release in October Mohsin Issa, co-owner of Asda, said: "We are delighted to formally complete the transaction that we announced in August and taking the next step on our journey to creating a new and exciting part of our Asda business.
"As millions of families deal with the day-to-day impacts of increasing costs of living, we're committed to bringing Asda's great-value groceries and fuel to even more communities across the UK through these new stores.
"We look forward to working collaboratively with the CMA on their investigation and to welcoming our new Asda colleagues to our great business in the coming months."
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