Italcementi to buy-out Ciments Français subsidiary

Italcementi has announced plans to fully acquire its French subsidiary, Ciments Français, in a share swap deal.

Italcementi already owns 81,94% of Ciments Français, with the remainder of its stock listed on the Paris Euronext exchange. Under the terms of the deal, Italcementi plans to swap 8.25 of its ordinary shares for each share in Ciments Français. It says this represents a 12.9% premium on Ciments Français' average share pirce over the last three months.

The buy-out is part of an initiative by Italcementi and its controlling shareholder, Italmobiliare, to streamline the company's structure. Following the full acquisition of Ciments Français, the company will be integrated into Italcementi, and the resulting company will have shares listed on both the Milan and Paris stock exchanges. The merger is not expected to lead to any job losses.

Italcementi says that under French securities law it is not required to make a tender offer to acquire Ciments Français. However, it is seeking confirmation from stock market regulators on this point.