Lafarge to sell Chilean business

Lafarge is to sell its interests in cement, aggregates and concrete businesses in Chile to the Peruvian conglomerate Brescia Group for US$ 555 million. The deal is part of the company's global divestment plan.

The assets being sold with Lafarge's exit from the market include a 1.5 million tonne per year cement plant in La Calera, some 100km from Santiago, a 300000 tonne per year grinding plant in the south of the country and a second grinding plan currently under construction in Ventanas. It is also selling 54 ready-mixed concrete plants, five aggregate quarries, an import terminal and mortar production unit.

Lafarge's minority interest in its Chilean gypsum business is not included in the sale.

Lafarge owns 84% of these assets through two corporate entities - Lafarge Chile SA and Immobilaria San Patricio. Both are listed on the Santiago stock exchange.

The transaction is due to take effect from 31 August, following Brescia Group's launch of a public tender to buy-out other minority interests in Lafarge Chile SA.

Divestments

The deal represents a major part of the € 1 billion (US$ 1.43 billion) divestment programme announced in February. It has already sold asphalt businesses in the US and Canada, aggregates and concrete operations in Europe and North America and a cement plant in Turkey. Including the Chilean deal, these take its divestments to date this year to € 750 million (US$ 1.07 billion).