Germany's Federal Cartel Office has announced that it is investigating the iron ore joint venture planned by Australian mining giants BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto for their Western Australian assets, international news sources have reported.
If the joint venture is realized between the world's second and third largest iron ore producers, their combined production would immediately exceed that of the world's top producer Brazil-based Vale.
As SteelOrbis previously reported, the European Commission and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission are among the institutions investigating the proposed joint venture.