Iceland’s Competition Authority has announced that it will investigate the proposed merger between two of the country’s largest salmon farmers.
Arnarlax and Arctic Fish are both Norwegian-owned, by SalMar and Norway Royal Salmon (NRS) respectively. NTS, which owns NRS, was purchased by SalMar earlier in the year.
“The merger leads to the fact that the competitors Arnarlax and Arctic Fish, which farm in the Westfjords, will be under the control of the same party,” Iceland’s Competition Authority said in a statement.
“During the investigation of the case, the Competition Authority will obtain views and information from market and business partners. Among other things, the investigation gives reason to believe that the parties’ market share in the likely markets of the case will be considerable.”
“In the opinion of the Competition Authority, it is necessary to activate further deadlines for the investigation of the case, among other things with the aim of checking in more detail the possible adverse effects of the merger and/or entry barriers,” the agency added.
“The parties to the merger have therefore been informed that there is a reason for further investigation into the competitive effects of the merger, which is often referred to as phase two in merger control,” the statement concludes.
Norway’s Competition Authority has approved the SalMar-NTS merger. It is awaiting approval from the European Union’s Commission.
Arnarlax and Arctic Fish refused to comment on the situation.
