Mensajepor Gordon » Mié Jul 19, 2023 1:00 am
InterCement evaluates selling assets in Brazil and Argentina
2023-07-18 02:02:52.450 GMT
InterCement evaluates selling assets in Brazil and Argentina
Mônica Scaramuzzo, Fernanda Guimarães, Ivo Ribeiro
(Valor International)
InterCement’s competitors, inside and outside Brazil, are contacting the
cement company to evaluate the purchase of the company’s assets in the country
and Argentina, said a source familiar with the matter. In financial
restructuring, due to its high debt, the company has already sold assets in
Africa this year but still needs to resolve short-term debts, especially those
due in 2024.
The third family generation of the Mover group (formerly Camargo Corrêa),
which controls InterCement Participações (ICP), has not yet decided to sell
assets in the two countries where InterCement Brasil and Loma Negra operate.
There is still no consensus on the issue — the matter has been discussed with
the current directors of the holding company appointed by the representatives
of the heirs, according to a person familiar with the company. Houlihan Lokey
is advising the group on this process.
According to a source, there is a natural pressure to continue the asset sale
program, but in his view, the ongoing restructuring process will not be
sufficient to fix InterCement’s earnings reports. However, the form of the
financial restructuring is still being defined.
ICP has more than $1.5 billion of net debt through 2027. Of this amount, which
includes bonds held by three major banks, the largest payment is due in May
2024, a senior note of $548 million.
What the company will receive in net worth — just over $200 million — for
transactions in the assets of Egypt, South Africa, and Mozambique only
alleviates short-term maturity pressure during 2023.
In the evaluation of institutions with claims on the company — leader in the
sale of cement in Argentina and third in Brazil — the situation of ICP will
normalize only with the sale of more assets and this is the path defended by
its main creditors.
However, there is a consensus in the sector and the financial market that
there is a lack of firm leadership to manage the family business, which in
addition to the cement company owns a significant part of CCR (infrastructure
concessionaire) and real estate assets (HM and CCDI). The heavy construction
business has lost momentum and the group is still trying to get rid of the
Estaleiro Atlântico Sul (EAS).
Industry sources say that there may be several competitors in Brazil with the
potential to take individual assets from the local operation, which has 15
plants, a regional slice, or even the whole company. IC Brasil has produced
around 8.7 million tonnes of cement, with an effective production capacity of
12.2 million tonnes — 5 million tonnes are "hibernated" as a result of the
shutdown of 6 plants, two integrated and four mills.
The Buzzi/Brennand and Vicat/Ciplan groups are said to be interested in
evaluating ICP’s initiative to put assets up for sale. As the market leader,
Votorantim Cimentos is very targeted by CADE, the Brazilian antitrust agency,
so, it could only look at assets that do not overlap with its business —
around 35%.
Benjamin Steinbruch’s CSN Cimentos, in turn, would have an interest in all the
Brazilian assets. But CSN was also big in Brazil, with 18% to 20% of the
market, after acquiring Elizabeth and Lafarge Holcim in a deal that totaled
$1.25 billion.
However, the company’s presence in the Center-West region is low and
nonexistent in the South. InterCement has assets available in both regions:
two plants in Rio Grande do Sul, one in Goiás (Cezarina) and another in Mato
Grosso do Sul (Bodoquena).
Two other groups could make a move: the Greek Titan, which has 50% of Apodi in
the Ceará state; and Mizu, one of the five largest cement companies in the
country which belongs to the owners of the concrete company Polimix.
In Argentina, Mexico’s Cemex groups — a cement giant in the Americas —
Colombia’s Cementos Argos and Peru’s Cementos Pacasmaio are said to have
surveyed Loma Negra, which operates nine plants and has about 45% of the
market. Although smaller than IC Brasil, Loma Negra’s commercial and
profitability performance has been superior to that of the Brazilian company.
ICP holds just over 50% of Loma Negra’s capital, having sold 49% of its shares
in 2017 on the New York and Buenos Aires stock exchanges, raising more than
$1.1 billion. This was done as part of ICP’s financial deleveraging process.
This process had a new operation in October 2018 with the sale of the assets
in Portugal and Cape Verde for $800 million to the Oyak group of Turkey.
InterCement does not have a formal mandate to sell assets inside and outside
Brazil. J.P. Morgan has advised the company on the sale of units in Egypt,
South Africa, and Mozambique.
There is an understanding that it would not be the right time to divest the
assets in Argentina, as the country is on the eve of presidential elections. A
person familiar with the matter said the process is expected to take place in
the coming months.
In Brazil, a part of the leadership group of Mover and ICP, which changed
management in April, believes that divestiture would devalue the cement
company’s portfolio. Hibernated units would have to enter the process. This
risk is considered by industry executives since 40% of the factories are
paralyzed due to overcapacity concerning cement consumption.
According to the National Cement Industry Union (SNIC), the sector operates
with an idle capacity of 34% and the best prospect is that sales this year
will be the same as in 2022. A source said that because of this, all the major
manufacturers have closed plants. IC Brasil would be no exception.
According to ICP information material, the plants, and mills of João Pessoa
(Paraíba state), Suape (Pernambuco state), Brumado (Bahia state), Pedro
Leopoldo (Minas Gerais state) and Cubatão and Jacareí (São Paulo state) are
hibernating.
Although ICP has gained some financial momentum in the short term with the
sale of African assets, there is a consensus that the company needs to have
guaranteed liquidity for debts that mature as early as 2024.
ICP has hired Houlihan Lokey to assess the company’s situation and to discuss
with the heirs the key strategic decisions for the financial restructuring of
the cement company. E. Munhoz law firm is providing legal advice.
The bonds mature in 2024. There are reports that the American bank Moelis has
been hired to represent the bondholders.
Asked, InterCement did not comment. Argos, Cemex, and Pacasmaio did not reply
to requests for comment. In a statement, Mover declared that “InterCement is
committed to achieving the best adequacy of its capital structure, with the
restructuring of its debt”.
-0- Jul/18/2023 02:02 GMT