Coles says ACCC expert reports reshaped merger assessment, court documents show
By Saloni Sinha ( July 29, 2026, 07:00 GMT | Insight) -- Coles Supermarkets Australia has alleged that the antitrust regulator’s assessment of its proposed Kalgoorlie site acquisition evolved during the merger review, with expert reports commissioned by the watchdog indicating a different theory of harm from that outlined in its notice of competition concerns. In an affidavit filed in the Federal Court and seen by MLex, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer partner Linda Evans said that after Coles responded to the notice of competition concerns, the regulator continued to provide new material, including an expert report by Toulouse School of Economics professor Patrick Rey on the economic principles for assessing whether the exit of a supermarket competitor would be an efficient outcome of competition and a report by business=management consultant FTI Consulting.Coles Supermarkets Australia has alleged that the antitrust regulator’s assessment of its proposed Kalgoorlie site acquisition evolved during the merger review, with expert reports commissioned by the watchdog indicating a different theory of harm from that outlined in its notice of competition concerns....
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