By Peter OBIORA InvestAdvocate
Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE) – Holcim Ltd, one of the world’s leading suppliers of cement and aggregates said on Monday it has divested 27.5 percent of its minority stake in Thailand’s cement producer, Siam City Cement Company Ltd (SCCC).
Holcim said the 27.5 percent representing its entire stake in the Thais cement company was sold via a private placement in capital markets.
“For the sale of its entire remaining stake, Holcim will receive a total consideration of approximately CHF 655 million, which will result in a gain before taxes of approximately CHF 365 million. Of the 27.5 percent, 24.9 percent were acquired by a member of the Jardine Matheson Group, a Hong-Kong-based conglomerate, while the remaining 2.6 percent were purchased by a number of high quality institutional investors, “ Holcim said in a statement.
According to the world’s leading suppliers of cement and aggregates, the proceeds of the sale will be used for general corporate purposes and the transaction will close as per standard SET (Stock Exchange of Thailand) settlement rules.
SCCC is a leading construction materials group which has a cement production capacity of 14.5 million tonnes at its Saraburi plant. With more than 4,000 employees, the company recorded net sales of THB 31.86billion in 2014.
Holcim in mid March disclosed it planned €42 billion ($44.27 billion) merger with Lafarge may no longer hold.
The company said pressure from its shareholders of which made it suggested that it wouldn’t go ahead with the proposed merger deal with Lafarge.
The Switzerland’s based Holcim said in a statement it would seek changes in “the financial terms and governance structure” of the agreement with Lafarge. It said specifically it would seek changes to the deal’s proposed one-for-one share exchange ratio.
Holcim is seeking better financial terms and questioning whether Lafarge’s chief executive should lead the combined company as initially agreed.
Both Holcim and Lafarge said on March 20, that they have reached an agreement on their planned €42 billion ($44.27 billion) merger deal.
“The Boards of Directors of Holcim and Lafarge are pleased to announce that they have reached an agreement on revised terms for the merger of equals between both companies,” a joint statement from Holcim and Lafarge said.
Meanwhile, a Swiss newspaper reported on Sunday that Russian businessman Filaret Galchev, who owns a 10.8 percent stake in Holcim via Eurocement Holding AG, has rejected the takeover offer that France’s Lafarge made for Holcim, Galchev, Holcim’s second-largest shareholder, views the offer as “not satisfactory and half-baked”, the Sonntagszeitung reported, citing an unnamed source described as a Galchev confidant.
Galchev believes the exchange ratio offered by Lafarge at 1:0.9 shares still fails to compensate Holcim shareholders adequately, and that a decision needs to be made about who will lead any combined firm, the paper wrote.
