Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and U.S. asset manager BlackRock have withdrawn their antitrust review application for the planned acquisition of a 50% stake in the BEST container terminal at the Port of Barcelona, Spain.

The transaction is part of MSC’s broader deal with BlackRock to acquire key port assets from CK Hutchison Holdings (CK Hutchison) through MSC’s terminal operating arm Terminal Investment Limited (TiL).

According to Spanish media reports, the two parties agreed to abandon the planned acquisition of the stake in Terminal Catalunya, the operator of the BEST container terminal. The terminal is one of the major deep-water container terminals in the Mediterranean and an important gateway for Southern European trade.

Under the original plan, TiL and BlackRock would acquire a 50% stake in Terminal Catalunya from Hutchison Ports, jointly controlling the terminal together with Hutchison Ports.

The transaction was submitted to the European Commission for antitrust review in November 2025. However, regulators raised concerns that the deal could lead to higher terminal service prices or reduced service quality. They also noted that MSC, as the world’s largest container shipping company by capacity, already has a significant market presence in the region, and further control of terminal assets could create competitive advantages.

In January 2026, the European Commission suspended the review process after the parties failed to provide required documents. The withdrawal of the application followed months of regulatory uncertainty.

The withdrawal does not necessarily mean the deal has been permanently abandoned. MSC and BlackRock may revise the transaction structure and resubmit the application in the future.

The Barcelona terminal transaction is separate from, but part of the broader framework of, MSC and BlackRock’s planned acquisition of CK Hutchison’s global port assets. The overall transaction remains subject to regulatory reviews in multiple jurisdictions, including China, the United States and the United Kingdom.

CK Hutchison has previously stated that completion of the transaction depends on obtaining all necessary legal, regulatory and shareholder approvals and that the deal will not proceed under any unlawful or non-compliant circumstances.