The Competition Commission said Friday it would ask the Competition Tribunal to approve the intended acquisition by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) of OMV, without conditions.
The Commission found the proposed transaction was unlikely to result in substantial lessening of competition in any relevant markets, and it did not raise substantial public interest concerns, a statement from the Commission said.
ADNOC, owned by the government of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, controls numerous firms globally, although it does not control any company in South Africa. It is an energy and petrochemicals group operating across the entire hydrocarbon value chain through a network of fully integrated businesses.
In 2022, the ADNOC Group supplied refined oil products (sulphur, gas oil, gasoline and aviation fuel) to South Africa.
OMV is controlled by Österreichische Beteiligungs, an Austrian government holding company and Mubadala Petroleum Petrochemicals Holding Company. In South Africa, OMV is only active through its subsidiary, Borealis.
OMV is globally active in upstream and downstream oil and gas activities. The upstream business activities focus on the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas in certain regions including Central and Eastern Europe, North Sea, Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific.
The downstream oil business operates refineries in Austria, Germany and Romania. OMV is also active in the production and commercialisation of base chemicals and polyolefins via Borealis. In addition, OMV is active in the production and commercialisation of polyolefins, base chemicals and fertilisers.
BUSINESS REPORT