HAL Halliburton Co

By Tom Fairless 

BRUSSELS-- Halliburton Co. faces a fresh hurdle toward its $35 billion acquisition of rival Baker Hughes Inc. after European Union regulators opened a full-blown antitrust investigation into the deal, warning it raised "serious potential competition concerns."

The merger, which would unite the second and third largest oil-field services firms, already faces a growing list of antitrust concerns in the U.S., while the slump in oil prices complicates the firms' efforts to find buyers of any assets.

The European Commission, the EU's top antitrust authority, said Tuesday it would open an in-depth probe into the merger after its initial inquiry showed the firms were close competitors.

Such inquiries are common in large mergers and don't indicate a deal will be blocked. If the concerns are confirmed, the companies can decide to make concessions, such as selling assets, to assuage the regulator. If those aren't deemed sufficient, Brussels can also block the deal.

EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said her agency would have to "look closely" at the merger. The initial probe found serious potential concerns in more than 30 product and service lines, the regulator said.

The EU now has until May 26 to review the deal.

Write to Tom Fairless at tom.fairless@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 12, 2016 13:56 ET (18:56 GMT)

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