Loma Negra, the Argentinian cement company, signed an agreement to negotiate its sale to Companhia Siderurgica Nacional – CSN, the largest Brazilian steel producer. This is a key step in the process of the Camargo Correa group project, who owns Intercement, to disinvest their assets in the country. They announced this in February this year.
Loma Negra, the traditional Argentine cement company, has been part of Intercement for two decades. The company informed its investors about singing an exclusivity agreement until July 12th, 2024 with CSN, which is owned by Benjamin Steinbruch. The agreement involves the negotiation of a potential sale of their shares that represent 100% of their capital. This agreement does not represent a firm obligation or commitment to a potential transaction, but it is a key step in the process to alleviate their liabilities.
Marcelo Mindlin, owner of Pampa Energía, is among those interested in buying the company, according to Argentine financial market sources, which was listed on Wall Street with a market value of USD 1,028 million. The sources also believed that Mindlin could bid for the cement company with Daniel Sielecki, with whom he is already a partner in Transportadora Gas de Sur, TGS, another company listed in the United States. In the end, Companhia Siderurgica Nacional from Brazil took the lead.
Last year, Camargo Correa – through InterCement – sold its companies in the sector in Mozambique and South Africa to the Chinese company Huaxin Cement, who could also be interested in the local company, in addition to other Camargo competitors in Brazil. Furthermore, in 2020, they had disinvested its assets from their cement company in Paraguay, Yguazú Cementos, in which they controlled 51% of the shares.
Loma Negra was founded in 1926 by businessman Alfredo Fortabat, who discovered limestone, the raw material for cement, in the town of Olavarría. For decades after his death, the company was managed by his widow, Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat. In 2005, the company wsa sold to the Brazilian group Camargo Correa.
According to the company’s own official information, its main activity is “the manufacturing and marketing of cement and its derivatives, as well as the extraction of mineral resources that are used in their production process.”
Loma Negra is the largest cement company in Argentina and they are close to turning 100 years old. The company is leader in the production and marketing of cement and they are key players of the country’s construction industry. With more than 95 years of experience, history and commitment, Loma Negra is recognized as one of the companies with greatest public recognition in Argentina.
The cement producer owns 8 cement plants in Argentina, in Buenos Aires, Neuquén, San Juan and Catamarca. It also has mobile concrete mixing plants that adapt to clients’ construction projects at all times. They also control Ferrosur Roca, through their subsidiary Cofesur, a company comprised by the national government (16%), Cofesur (80%) and 4% that was transferred by Confesur to their employees as a trust fund. The company operates the Roca Railway freight network under a concession granted by the Argentine government in 1993 for a period of 30 years, allowing access to several of the Loma Negra cement plants to the railway network.
The concession ended in March 2023, but at the end of 2022, the Government extended the concessions of FerroExpreso Pampeano, Nuevo Central Argentino and Ferrosur Roca until September 2024. The Group has evaluated the possible business scenarios, considering its intention to continue providing services as an operator of the railway network.
Loma Negra also controls Recycomb, a company dedicated to the treatment and recycling of industrial waste for use as fuel or raw material.
Source: https://www.infobae.com/