Paris, Vienna,
May 25, 2010
Lafarge, the world leader in building materials, and
STRABAG, Central and Eastern Europe's largest construction company, are combining
their cement activities in several countries of Central
Europe. The two companies
signed an agreement on May 25, 2010 creating the holding company Lafarge Cement
CE Holding GmbH. The new company will have its headquarters in Austria.
Lafarge
will bring its cement plants at Mannersdorf and Retznei in Austria, Cížkovice in Czech
Republic and Trbovlje in Slovenia into the holding, while STRABAG will
contribute the plant it is currently building in Pécs in Hungary. Lafarge then will hold a 70% interest in the new
company, while STRABAG will hold 30%. As
a result of this transaction, Lafarge debt will be reduced by 77.5 million
euros.
Lafarge
Cement CE Holding GmbH will have a total annual production capacity of 4.8
million tonnes of cement. These construction materials will be sold under the
Lafarge brand name in all countries.
By joining their activities on the Austrian, Czech,
Slovak, Slovenian and Hungarian markets, the two companies expect significant
synergies in terms of investment and cost.
"The
deal helps us to secure exactly the amount of cement we need in a year, namely
1.5 million tonnes, in just those countries in which we need it. It also allows
us to achieve economies of scale in procurement and administration and to
profit from the know-how of the global cement market leader," STRABAG CEO Dr. Hans Peter Haselsteiner says in
explanation of the strategy.
Bruno Lafont, Chairman and CEO of Lafarge commented
"with this common company, we are
really combining the strengths of two leaders on their respective markets. This
strategic move will allow both companies to better cross their respective
understanding and knowledge of customers' needs and producer capabilities; as a
consequence, we believe it will contribute to product and services development
in the near future and will be a benefit to our customers. Thanks to the larger
industrial network created, we will also have value creation opportunities,
notably through logistics optimization."
Pending the approval by the relevant competition
authorities, the company would become operational January 1st, 2011. It will be fully consolidated by Lafarge and at equity
by STRABAG.
Notes to Editors
Lafarge is the world leader in building materials, with top-ranking positions in all of
its businesses: Cement, Aggregates & Concrete and Gypsum. With 78,000 employees in 78 countries,
Lafarge posted sales of € 15.9 billion in 2009. In 2010, and for the sixth year in a row, Lafarge was listed in the "Global
100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World". With the world's leading
building materials research facility, Lafarge places innovation at the heart of
its priorities, working for sustainable construction and architectural
creativity.
STRABAG SE is one of Europe's leading construction
groups. With some 75,500 employees, STRABAG generated a
construction output volume of € 13.0 billion in the
2009 financial year. From its core markets of Austria and Germany, STRABAG
is present via its numerous subsidiaries in all countries of Eastern and
South-East Europe, in selected markets in Western Europe and on the Arabian
Peninsula. STRABAG's activities span the entire construction industry (Building
Construction and Civil Engineering, Transportation Infrastructures, Tunnelling)
and cover the entire value-added chain in the field of construction. More
information is available at www.strabag.com.
