In November, PORR approached the Austrian Federal Competition Authority (AFCA) to engage in pre-notification discussions. On 24 November 2025, the acquisition by PORR Bau GmbH, Vienna, of all shares in VAMED Standortentwicklung und Engineering GmbH, Vienna, from Fresenius was notified to the AFCA as a merger.
The merger was preceded by proceedings before the European Commission involving a different transaction structure. The European Commission therefore cooperated with the AFCA.
As part of its investigations, the AFCA conducted extensive market surveys. Competitors and customers of both companies were surveyed in relation to the Health Tech Engineering project business, building construction services in the healthcare sector, and the construction of building services installations.
Following an in-depth assessment of potential theories of harm and competitive effects, as well as an evaluation of the market survey, no competition concerns arose that would have justified initiating an in-depth examination of the merger before the Cartel Court ("Phase II"). The deadline for filing an application for examination therefore expired on 22 December 2025. The merger may consequently be completed.
Pre-notification discussions
Companies may submit documents to the AFCA before formally notifying a merger and thereby triggering the statutory review period. This takes place as part of a pre-notification procedure. Such a procedure is particularly useful in complex cases or where potential competition law issues should be identified at an early stage. Its aim is to ensure an efficient merger control process.
The regular review period is four weeks and may be extended to a maximum of six weeks. Within this period, the AFCA determines whether the merger can be cleared, cleared subject to conditions, or referred to the Cartel Court for an in-depth examination.