The acquisition of Chilean company Steel Ingeniería is Ferrovial's first step into the mining business. Ferrovial Services is reinforcing its international presence through the entry into new markets, such as Poland and Qatar, and the recent acquisition of Enterprise in the UK. Steel Ingeniería has more than 1,100 employees and is a leading provider of mining services.
Ferrovial, a global operator in infrastructure and services, has acquired 70% of Steel Ingeniería, a specialized mining services company in Chile, for 21 million euro through subsidiary Ferrovial Services. It is Ferrovial's first step into this new market.
As a result of this transaction, Ferrovial Services is now operating in Latin America and continues to expand its international footprint, following recent contracts awards in Poland and Qatar and the acquisition of Enterprise in the UK.
"This is a transaction that fits within the company's strategic objectives and offers considerable scope for value creation," said Santiago Olivares, CEO of Ferrovial Services. "Steel Ingeniería is an excellent platform for development in Chile, a market of great interest. Moreover, it provides us with mining capabilities that will support our expansion into other countries in the region," he said.
Ferrovial has an extensive track record in Chile, where it has been operating for the last 20 years ago in the areas of construction, toll road concessions and airport management.
At 2012 year-end, Ferrovial Services had an order book of more than 12.5 billion euro, activities in more than 130 large European cities, and many industrial clients. The company remains a leader in Spain and the UK in its main areas of activity: infrastructure maintenance, environmental services, facility management, and energy efficiency.
Steel Ingeniería, founded in 1998, is a leading mining services company in Chile specialized mainly in industrial maintenance and heavy machinery operation and maintenance at mines. The company had 1,100 employees and revenues of 48 million euro in 2012, serving major clients such as Codelco, Anglo American Chile, Barrick, Kinross and Antofagasta Minerals.
Mining accounts for 13% of Chile's GDP. The country produces one-third of the world's copper and holds 30% of global copper reserves. Chilean mining companies provided services acquire services for over 5 billion dollars.
Cristián Vizcaya, Steel Ingeniería general manager and owner of 30% of the company, confirmed that the company is "very pleased with the agreement. We are certain that Ferrovial's extensive experience in the services sector will enable Steel Ingeniería to remain successful in its operations and to expand its business".
This acquisition will enable Steel Ingeniería to develop its capacities as a provider of end-to-end value-added services, strengthened by Ferrovial's experience, broad services portfolio, and management and financial capacity.
