Displaying items by tag: Stake

France: ArcelorMittal plans to increase its stake in Ecocem France to 49% from 30% by the end of May 2018. The transaction is subject to the approval of the Irish Competition Authority. The French subsidiary of Ireland’s Ecocem was set up in 2007 by ArcelorMittal and Ecocem Materials.

Ecocem produces slag cement from ground granulated blast furnace slag. Ecocem France operates a 0.7Mt/yr grinding plant at Fos-sur-Mer near to an ArcelorMittal plant. It plans to open a second 0.7Mt/yr grinding plant at Dunkirk in May 2018. The new plant is intended to target western and northern France as well as export markets in the UK and Belgium.

Kenya: Quantum Global has sold its stake in Savannah Cement following approval by the Kenyan Competition Commission. This follows the sale of its stake in Seruji, the Mauritius-based firm that owns a 60% stake in Savannah Cement, according to the Standard newspaper. Quantum Global’s departure gives entrepreneur Benson Ndeta more control over Savannah Cement, which will now own Seruji. Ndeta also holds a stake in Savannah Heights, the other shareholder in Savannah.

Private equity firm Quantum Global has held the asset since 2015 through its US$1.1bn Infrastructure Fund. Savannah Cement started operating in 2012 and it runs a 1.5Mt/yr grinding plant at Athi-River near Nairobi.

Mexico: Cemex has sold its remaining direct 9.47% stake in Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) for around US$168m. Proceeds from the sale will be used for debt reduction and for ‘general’ corporate purposes. However, the Mexican cement producer will continue to hold a 20% indirect stake in GCC through its subsidiary Camcem.

Mexico: Cemex has retained a 9.5% stake in Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) following a sale of some of shares in the Mexican cement producer. Cemex said that the underwriters did not exercise their over-allotment option to acquire shares in GCC. Originally Cemex said in late 2016 that it intended to sell its full 23% minority stake in GCC.

India: ACC has sold its 12.1% in Shiva Cement to JSW Cement for US$5.8m. Following the sale JSW Cement now holds the entire promoter holding in Shiva Cement, according to the Mint newspaper. In January 2017 JSW Cement announced that it was making an open offer to buy out Shiva Cement. Shiva Cement operates a 0.2Mt/yr cement plant in Rourkela, Odisha.

Tunisia: Finance Minister Lamia Zribi has said that the Tunisian government has decided to sell its share in Carthage Cement. It owns an estimated 41% share of the cement producer, according to Tunis Afrique Presse. Zribi said that the decision was due to financial problems at the company as well as issues with production and export. Carthage Cement's chief executive Ibrahim Sanaa has blamed a rise in production costs on a poor construction market and production overcapacity.

Chile: Cementos Bio Bio plans to sell a 5.38% share in its business at auction on 3 February 2017. The cement producer hopes to raise US$16.8m in the transaction, according to La Tercera newspaper. The transaction will be handled by Credicorp.

Mexico: Cemex has said that it will start selling its 23% minority stake in Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua. The cement producer previously announced its intent to sell its stake but it sought permissions from the regulators first. It intends to sell its shares via a public offering authorised by the Comisión Nacional Bancaria y de Valores and conducted through the Mexican Stock Exchange. It will also run a private placement to eligible investors outside of Mexico.

UK: Sweden’s BillerudKorsnäs has purchased a minor stake in technology company Hanhaa in order to invest in the so-called ‘internet of packaging.’ The company’s technology allows users to track the location and the condition of deliveries in real time and on a large scale across carriers and countries. The investment is being made by a development wing of BillerudKorsnäs in order to develop new solutions in the packaging value chain. No value for the transaction has been disclosed but the investment has been described as ‘small’.

“Combining our own core-related skills with the skills of these start-up companies will allow us to create fruitful collaborations and together identify entirely new solutions. We will also draw on our experience and knowledge of bringing products to market on an industrial scale. Together with Hanhaa, we’re continuing to build tomorrow’s internet of packaging. Expanding our offering of digital solutions will allow us to continue challenging conventional packaging for a sustainable future,” said BillerudKorsnäs Venture Managing Director Anders Persson.

BillerudKorsnäs produces packaging materials and its clients include cement producers.

Bahrain: The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), a development bank jointly owned by Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) member states, has purchased 30% stake in Falcon Cement. The deal was completed with the GFH Financial Group.

“We are delighted to acquire a 30% stake in FCC, Bahrain’s largest cement producer. We believe this is a high growth sector for Bahrain and the investment assists us in diversifying our investment portfolio. The investment is also a strong signal of APICORP’s commitment to driving economic growth throughout the region,” said Raed Al Rayes, Deputy CE and General Manager of APICORP.

Falcon Cement runs the country’s sole integrated cement plant. It has a production capacity of 1000t/day and this is currently being upgraded to 2400t/day in 2017. Another regional firm, Integrated Capital PJSC, part of the Abu Dhabi Financial Group, bought a 10% stake in Falcon Cement in 2016.