Brazilian conglomerate Camargo Correa SA is in talks to sell a minority stake in Loma Negra Cia Industrial SA, Argentina’s number one cement producer.
Camargo Correa is in negotiations with a number of unspecified potential bidders, most of which are investment firms with holdings in industrial companies whose focus is not solely on cement.
Camargo Correa’s interests in cement are all managed by a Sauo Paulo-based investment holding company known as InterCement. Camargo Correa has discussed selling part of InterCement or partially disposing of assets such as Loma Negra for at least two years. Intentions to dispose of another business come as Camargo Correa rapidly recovers from the impact of a corruption probe at state companies that were key clients of the conglomerate’s engineering unit.
InterCement, Brazil’s second cement producer, is a leading producer of the construction material in Portugal, Mozambique and Cabo Verde.
Camargo Correa purchased Loma Negra in 2005 for $1 billion, the first of a series of acquisitions to strengthen the foothold of InterCement in emerging markets. Loma Negra was founded in 1926 by Argentine businessman Alfredo Fortabat.