Cleanaway’s $2.5 billion bid for the Australian assets of Suez could be imperiled by an escalation in tensions between the French waste giant and its own suitor, Paris-listed rival Veolia, ahead of a critical upcoming shareholder meeting.

Veolia, which owns 29.9 per cent of Suez, has been trying to take control of Suez through a hostile €11.2 billion ($17.5 billion) takeover. Last week, it blasted the company’s plans to sell its Australian business to ASX-listed Cleanaway, including some key assets for what it described as a “knock-down price”.

In a fresh statement released after the ASX close on Friday, Veolia intensified its criticism of the deal. “The attempt to sell Suez Australia is a new provocation towards Veolia, who is asking Suez board of Directors to stop its destructive tactics, which makes neither industrial nor financial sense and puts all stakeholders simultaneously at risk,” it said in a statement Friday evening.

Veolia declined to comment on a Reuters report that it had applied to European Union competition regulators for permission to vote its shares at Suez’ annual shareholder meeting that must be held by the end of June.

EU merger rules prevent acquiring companies from exercising any form of control over their targets until takeover deals have been cleared by regulators.

As the largest shareholder of Suez, Veolia could potentially vote out board members who oppose its bid, and halt asset sales like the Cleanaway deal, if regulators approved its request.

“In reality, this operation has only one goal: to block Veolia’s public offer by all means, as shown by the multiple conditions granted to Cleanaway to lure them into an offer,” said Veolia in a recent statement about the Cleanaway deal.

“This deal is a win-win for Cleanaway in every respect, to the detriment of Suez shareholders.”

Veolia cited the 16 per cent rise in Cleanaway’s share price last week, when the deal was announced, as a demonstration of just how favourable the deal was for the Australian company.