April 22 (Bloomberg) -- Soaring iron-ore prices may cause a delay in the German Cartel Office’s findings on the planned merger of the iron-ore production of BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, and Rio Tinto Plc.

Germany aims to complete its probe into the merger of the companies’ mining production by July 31, timing the release of its conclusions with a European Commission assessment. Growing government concern over the price of iron ore, aired in a report to lawmakers this week, may weigh on the timing of a decision, Cartel Office spokesman Kay Weidner said.

“The outlook of our probe is still open and we don’t rule out needing more time beyond July,” Weidner said today in an interview in Bonn. “It’s a very tight market, and tightening it further must be viewed critically; a positive outcome for the merger is definitely not a foregone conclusion.”

In a report to the parliament in Berlin this week, the government said the creation of a “duopoly” cornering 70 percent of global iron-ore exports will “worsen the situation” of rising prices. The German steel industry, supplying carmakers and machine makers such as ThyssenKrupp AG, Siemens AG and Audi AG, may pay 3 billion euros ($4 billion) more for ore this year, according to the report.

“Surging iron-ore prices can hardly be blamed on this potential union; there are many causes for the price jumps,” Weidner said. Still, the government’s report lays partial blame for climbing prices on the merger, alongside global concentration of production, demand in China, the advent of quarterly purchase contracts and investors.

Probe Differences

Market prices for iron ore for immediate delivery to China, the biggest buyer, gained 30 percent in the first quarter to $155 a ton.

The European Union and German antitrust investigations differ, Weidner said. Under EU rules, the joint production venture of BHP and Rio doesn’t qualify as a “full-function” merger and is being assessed under general competition criteria. In German law, it adds up to a partial legal merger, he said.

Rio and BHP agreed in June to form an Australian iron-ore joint venture, combining mines, rail, ports and workforces, to save at least $10 billion. Output of the ore, BHP’s biggest earner in fiscal 2009, was 31.16 million metric tons in the first quarter after 28.19 million tons a year earlier, the Melbourne-based company said yesterday.

--Editors: Jennifer Freedman, Jeffrey Donovan

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Parkin in Berlin at bparkin@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Hertling at jhertling@bloomberg.net

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