Displaying items by tag: Francis Flower

UK: Sweden’s LKAB Minerals has signed a deal to buy Francis Flower. The acquisition is intended to bring a portfolio of sustainable products into LKAB Minerals’ portfolio. Implementation of the agreement is subject to Austrian merger clearance. Both parties are confident that the merger control process will be completed by the end of November 2018. No value for the agreement has been disclosed.

Francis Flower is a family owned business, and the main shareholder is the current chairman and chief executive officer (CEO), Adrian Willmott, who upon completion of the sale will resign his position in the business but remain available in a consultancy capacity during an integration phase. The company will be integrated into LKAB Minerals’ existing UK business under the leadership of Darren Wilson, who manages the UK and European business within LKAB Minerals.

Francis Flower recycles blast furnace slag from the steel industry for production of ground granulated blast furnace slag for use in cement production, among other offerings for industrial and agricultural use. It employs 130 people across four sites in the UK: Scunthorpe, Wicken, Gurney Slade and Runcorn.

LKAB Minerals in the UK has a similar size business across four sites and employs around 160 people. Its main operations are processing and marketing of minerals, primarily for the building, construction, polymer, coating, refractory and foundry industries.

“We have an ambition of growing the industrial minerals business significantly over time, to balance LKAB’s growing iron ore production,” said Leif Boström, Senior Vice President for the Special Products Division in LKAB and CEO of LKAB Minerals group. “This will strengthen LKAB Minerals’ offering to the building and construction industries.”

UK: Mineral resources company Francis Flower has announced the acquisition of the Scunthorpe ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) plant from Hanson Cement.

The business is capable of producing more than 500,000t/yr of GGBS and supplies customers in the Midlands and north of England. GGBS complements Francis Flower's existing range of high quality powdered minerals, which originate as by-products from various industries. This reduces the need for mineral extraction and landfill, delivering sustainable environmental solutions for its customers. The acquisition reflects both Francis Flower's commitment to developing its range of products and services in this sector and the credibility it has for making the most of mineral resources.

"We are absolutely delighted and very excited to announce this new acquisition. GGBS is an excellent fit to our existing product range and will help further our longstanding relationships in this sector," said Adrian Willmott, Chairman and CEO of Francis Flower. "We have a proven track record of making the most of mineral resources, reducing the need for mineral extraction as well as landfill and delivering sustainable solutions for our customers. We are very much looking forward to working with the team in Scunthorpe and developing the opportunities in the GGBS market as the UK construction sector continues to grow."