Cartel office clears Kemira's takeover of Sidra Wasserchemie

Clearance in phase II proceedings: despite a strong combined market position in iron salts, the authority found sufficient remaining competitors in Germany and abroad. Kemira operates domestic production sites for iron and aluminium salts in Dormagen and Rheinberg (North Rhine-Westphalia) and supplies water-intensive industries as well as municipal water and wastewater management from 58 production sites worldwide.

On 18 September 2026 Germany's Federal Cartel Office cleared the planned acquisition of Sidra Wasserchemie GmbH (Ibbenbüren) by Finland's Kemira Oyj (Helsinki) after an in-depth competition review. Authority president Andreas Mundt said the extensive investigation had shown a strong market position for both companies, particularly in iron salts in parts of Germany and partly in neighbouring countries, but that enough competitors remain in Germany and abroad to sufficiently constrain the merged entity's scope for action. (Sources: Bundeskartellamt via chemie.de, 18 Sep 2026; finanznachrichten.de, 18 Sep 2026)