Adjudication Delayed To 27 May
Australia's competition watchdog has pushed back the date for its ruling on the planned iron ore joint venture between BHP Billiton Ltd.and Rio Tinto Ltd to 27 May.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said it is waiting on more information from the miners on the plans to merge their operations in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.
The two companies plan to combine mines, railroad, ports and workforces in Western Australia’s Pilbara region in a 50-50 joint venture to save at least $10 billion. The deal will mean that two-thirds of global iron ore supply will be in the hands of two production groups and is being opposed by steelmakers in Europe and Asia. The ACCC has already taken a tougher than expected line in its response to the deal. Australian steel manufacturer, Bluescope Steel, has already raised concerns about the deal.
This is the second time the Commission has delayed its ruling. It had originally planned to announce its findings on 24 February but this was delayed to 28 April. This latest delay is "to allow time for BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto to respond to the ACCC's information request of 30 March 2010, and for the ACCC to consider the JV parties' responses".
German regulators are already investigating the planned merger and is now expected to report by the end of July.
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