Boral has agreed to acquire certain of Wagners’ construction materials interests in Queensland for AUD$173m (€126m), subject to official approval. The business to be acquired last year produced an EBITDA of Aus$17m (€12.4m) on a turnover of Aus$115m (€83.8m). Family-controlled Wagners will retain the Wagners name and continue to operate construction and mining services, where it will remain one of the leaders in Queensland. The Wagners cement grinding grinding plant at Pinkenba will not form part of the deal, but a long-term cement supply contract has been agreed with Boral for this facility. The sale is part of a streamlining of the business, which may eventually leads to the flotation of Wagners on the stock market.
The deal involves five quarries, 19 concrete plants and a fly ash joint venture taking fly ash from the Millmerran power station. Last year, these assets involved produced 1.21Mt of aggregates and 374,000m3 of ready-mixed concrete. About 275 of the 1000, or so, employees will transfer from Wagners to Boral. About 55% of the turnover comes from concrete, 23% from quarries and 20% from transport.
