(By Balaseshan) Air Products & Chemicals Inc. (NYSE:APD), a supplier of industrial gas, said it has agreed to buy a 67% majority stake in Chile-based Indura S.A. for $884 million, in a step to enhance its growth opportunities in Latin America.
The transaction is expected to be accretive to Air Products earnings per share in fiscal 2013.
Indura, which is headquartered in Santiago, Chile, is the largest independent industrial gas company in Latin America with annual sales of $478 million. This investment will position Air Products as the second largest industrial gas producer in Latin America, a region second in growth only to Asia.
By taking a majority stake in Indura, Air Products will extend its Latin American presence to 12 countries, enabling the company to benefit from greater economies of scale and a large talent pool to service multinational customers in more markets.
Indura has more than 2300 employees, over 20 production plants, over 40 filling sites and more than 100 retail outlets in the countries of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Its integrated gas and retail business includes liquid bulk, small on-sites and packaged gases.
APD closed Monday's regular trading up 0.15% at $79.60. The stock has been trading between $72.26 and $98 for the past 52weeks.