VOLKSWAGEN has received European Commission approval for its acquisition of sole control of Europcar International. The German manufacturer announced its plans in December 1999 to take over Europcar, which runs a fleet of over 138,000 vehicles in 96 countries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Previously the rental firm was owned by Volkswagen and Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-lits et du Tourisme, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Accor. The EC ruling declared that: 'The transition from joint to sole control will not significantly change Volkswagen's possibilities to give preferential treatment to Europcar as opposed to its competitors.' (April 2000)