Anglo American to sell stake in Lafarge Tarmac

The UK’s biggest cement maker, Lafarge Tarmac, is expected to be sold in the near future, opening the door for a huge global merger.

Anglo American bought a 50 per cent stake in the company less than two years ago and is now looking to sell it on for something in the region of £885 million. The business, which dates back to the early 20th century, employs 6,600 people in this country and has 330 sites spread across the UK.

France’s Lafarge owns the rest of the company and is going to buy the rest of it from Anglo American with the view to selling off the entire business in the future. Anglo American, meanwhile, will reportedly use the sale to pay off its debts.

Lafarge plans to sell it to help it gain approval from competition regulators for its merger with Swiss rival Holcim; the French firm needs to shed around £4 billion worth of assets for the merger to be completed. If it does go ahead, the merger between Lafarge and Holcim will create the world’s largest cement maker.

Anglo American said in a statement: "The sale will be subject to a number of conditions including the completion of the Lafarge/Holcim merger, the divestment of Lafarge Tarmac being accepted as a suitable remedy and approval of this sale transaction by the necessary regulators."

The Lafarge/Holcim merger is expected to go ahead in the first half of 2015.

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