Saint Gobain, the French construction materials giant, is to acquire Ploiesti-based firm DBW in a deal put at several million euros.
Saint Gobain Isover Austria AG will acquire 100% in the Ploiesti producer of insulating materials owned by Germany''s DBW Gmbh & Co KG and subsequently raise the firm''s production capacity through an investment programme of 40 million euros.
"The estimated investment of 40 million euros includes the deal for the takeover of DBW Ploiesti, as well as a brownfield (on a pre-existing structure) project to develop a new production facility for insulating materials made of glass wool using the assets that already exist in Ploiesti. Romania is a promising country and Saint Gobain wants to become a powerful industrial investor," Michel Hue, a representative of the Eurasia division of the French group, told Ziarul Financiar.
"We hope to seal the deal in Ploiesti with DBW as soon as possible," he added, though without providing any further details of the deal.
The buyer is being assisted in the deal by the local branch of French law firm Gide Loyrette Nouel. DBW officials had made no comment by the time of going to press.
In 2004, DBW Poliesti made net profits of 126,000 euros against a turnover of 5.8 million euros.
After years of testing the waters, Saint Gobain is now expanding strongly on the Romanian market. Last year it announced an investment plan of more than 100 million euros for the construction of a float glass plant in Calarasi.
Saint Gobain operates through a number of different divisions on the Romanian market: Brodrene Dahl (Tulcea), Saint Gobain Abrazivi (Satu Mare), Saint Gobain Conducte (Bucharest), Saint Gobain Glass Romania (Bucharest), Saint Gobain Isover Romania (Bucharest),Saint Gobain Rompolimer (Arad), and Saint Gobain Weber (Turda).
The investment in Ploiesti will begin next year, with production intended both for the domestic market and for export. At the same time, the plant in Calarasi will export about half of its production to the Balkan region. This will be followed by an increasing of exports and a strengthening of the French group''s position in the region. adrian.mirsanu@zf.ro
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