Holcim to sell Brazil ops to CSN in $1bn divestment

Swiss construction giant Holcim said Friday it has agreed to sell its Brazil operations to the cement unit of Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Siderurgica Nacional (CSN) in a $1 billion divestment deal.

“This divestment is another step in our transformation to become the global leader in innovative and sustainable building solutions giving us the flexibility to continue investing in attractive growth opportunities,” said Holcim Chief Executive Jan Jenisch.

The deal, with an entreprise value of $1.025 billion (866 million euros), includes Holcim’s five integrated cement plants, four grinding stations, six aggregate sites as well as 19 ready-mix concrete facilities.

For Holcim, which merged with France’s Lafarge in 2015 and is the world’s largest cement maker and present in more than 90 countries, the transaction will allow it to reduce significantly its debt ratio.

Last April the firm bought Firestone Building Products, the US offshoot of Japan’s Bridgestone Corporation, for $3.4 billion in order to diversify into commercial roofing, that deal marking the first significant acquisition since Jenisch’s 2017 arrival at the helm.

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