EANS-News: K+S Aktiengesellschaft Expansion of market position in East
European salt market esco acquires Solné Mlýny a.s. salt processing company in
the Czech Republic
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Mergers - Acquisitions - Takeovers
Kassel (euro adhoc) - Hannover, 3 January 2012
Expansion of market position in East European salt market
esco acquires Solné Mlýny a.s. salt processing company in the Czech Republic
esco - european salt company GmbH & Co. KG, a wholly owned subsidiary of K+S
Aktiengesellschaft, takes over the Czech salt processing company Solné Mlýny
a.s. (SMO). The closing of the transaction occurred today. esco is acquiring
SMO from the Czech trading group EQUUS, which has been undergoing insolvency
proceedings since mid-2010. SMO is a major supplier of salt products in the
Czech Republic and also operates in other European markets. The purchase price
is in the mid-single-digit million euro range.
SMO has been operating the salt processing business in the eastern Czech city
of Olomouc since 1921 and currently employs about 70 people. Particularly in
the table salt segment, the company has a brand that is well known nationwide
and enjoys a high level of recognition, and is established in the market with a
wide product range of food grade, industrial and de-icing salts. In a normal
year, SMO sells around 100,000 tonnes of its various salt products and has
until now been one of esco´s customers in the important Czech market.
About esco and K+S
esco - european salt company is responsible for the European salt business
within the Salt business segment of the K+S Group. esco has three rock salt
mines, two brine plants, and several plants processing evaporated salt in
Germany, France, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain, and has numerous
distribution sites. Its annual production capacity is about 9.7 million tonnes
of crystallised salt and salt in brine per year. Further information about esco
can be found at www.esco-salt.com.
The K+S Group is one of the world's leading suppliers of standard and
speciality fertilizers. In the salt business, K+S is the world´s leading
producer with sites in Europe as well as North and South America. K+S offers a
comprehensive range of goods and services for agriculture, industry, and
private consumers, which provides growth opportunities in virtually every
sphere of daily life. More than 14,000 people work for the K+S Group worldwide.
K+S - the commodity stock represented on the German share index, the DAX - is
quoted on all German stock exchanges. More information about K+S can be found
at www.k-plus-s.com.
Your contact persons:
esco: K+S:
Holger Bekemeier Michael Wudonig
Phone +49 511 85030-1840 Phone +49 561 9301-1262
Fax +49 511 85030-103 Fax +49 561 9301-1666
h.bekemeier@esco-salt.com michael.wudonig@k-plus-s.com
Further inquiry note:
Ihre Ansprechpartner:
Presse:
Michael Wudonig, CFA
Telefon: +49 561 9301-1262
Fax: +49 561 9301-1666
michael.wudonig@k-plus-s.com
K+S Aktiengesellschaft
Kommunikation und Medien
Postfach 10 20 29, 34111 Kassel
Bertha-von-Suttner-Str. 7, 34131 Kassel
www.k-plus-s.com
__________________________________________________________
Aufsichtsratsvorsitzender: Dr. Ralf Bethke
Vorstand: Norbert Steiner (Vors.), Joachim Felker, Gerd Grimmig, Dr. Thomas
Nöcker, Jan Peter Nonnenkamp
Sitz der Gesellschaft: Kassel; Handelsregister: Kassel HRB 2669
end of announcement euro adhoc
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company: K+S Aktiengesellschaft
Bertha-von-Suttner-Straße 7
D-34131 Kassel
phone: +49 (0)561 9301-1460
FAX: +49 (0)561 9301-2425
mail: christian.herrmann@k-plus-s.com
WWW: http://www.k-plus-s.com
sector: Chemicals
ISIN: DE000KSAG888
indexes: DAX, Midcap Market Index, CDAX, Classic All Share, HDAX, Prime All
Share
stockmarkets: official dealing/prime standard: Frankfurt, regulated dealing:
Stuttgart, München, official dealing: Berlin, Hamburg, Hannover
language: English