Acerinox, S.A. from Spain intended to acquire all shares and sole control over Haynes International, Inc. from the USA, thereby gaining complete control over Haynes. The merger involved sectors such as the production of pig iron, steel, and ferroalloys, as well as the production and initial processing of other non-ferrous metals.

The initial merger notification was submitted on October 3, 2024, following a prior notification in March 2024. The Austrian Federal Competition Authority (BWB) and the Federal Cartel Prosecutor (BKAnw) filed a review request with the Cartel Court during the first merger procedure. The combined market shares of the merging parties exceeded the presumption threshold of 30% in the area of nickel alloy flat products.

Due to these concerns, the merging parties withdrew their merger notification, leading the BWB and BKAnw to also withdraw their review request for procedural reasons. A significantly more comprehensive and revised second merger notification was submitted to the BWB in early October, addressing the concerns raised in the first review with additional market information.

During the six-week review period, the BWB issued several information requests to the applicants and conducted an extensive market survey, questioning around 120 customers of the merging parties. Key competitors in the nickel alloy flat products market were also surveyed, achieving a response rate of about 70%. The goal was to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the merger and the competitive proximity between the parties.

The BWB's investigation results largely confirmed the merging parties' claims that the lack of competitive proximity justified the merger's approval. Consequently, the merger was cleared by the BWB on November 14, 2024, upon the expiration of the review period.

However, the BKAnw maintained concerns regarding the merger's public interest implications, prompting the merging parties to offer behavioral commitments. The BWB found no anti-competitive effects from these commitments and did not oppose them.

The behavioral commitments offered to the BKAnw are available on the BWB's website. For inquiries regarding these commitments, contact BKAnw Mag. Ludwig Majer. The BWB's review report can be found online, with the BKAnw's report to be published soon.