Cementos Argos pulls out of Brazilian bidding process
Colombian building materials manufacturer Cementos Argos has announced that it will not move forward in the bidding process for assets pegged for divestment by Lafarge and Holcim in Brazil.
Argos’ José Alberto Vélez had previously hinted to local press that the group may be interested in assets in Brazil or Mexico but stressed that nothing concrete had been decided. However, in a statement released on 6 December, the group said that after studying the information it did not foresee the assets generating the expected return on investment.
CADE grants conditional approval for LafargeHolcim proposal
Brazil’s competition body, the Tribunal of the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE), approved the proposed merger between Lafarge and Holcim on 10 December. The approval was conditioned to the signature of a Merger Control Agreement and subject to a number of asset disposals in order to resolve competition concerns. The cement producers must divest plants in Arcos, Matozinhos and Santa Luiza, in the state of Minas Gerais, as well as in Cantagalo in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The buyer must receive approval from CADE and the transaction can only be concluded following the trade of their sale.
“The proposal presented by the companies addresses the concerns pointed by the Council in the cement, concrete, gravel and aggregates. The decision does not conflict with what was already decided by CADE in these markets.” said Reporting Commissioner Gilvandro Araújo.
Edited from various sources by Louise Fordham