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Air Liquide Widens Offerings with the Purchase of Lurgi
04/23/2007 - Air Liquide announced the acquisition of the engineering firm Lurgi from Global Engineering Alliance based on an equity value of approximately 550 million euros.
Air Liquide announced the acquisition of the engineering firm Lurgi from Global Engineering Alliance (GEA Group AG), based on an equity value of approximately 550 million euros.
The transaction is equivalent to an enterprise value of 200 million euros after including the assumption of Lurgi’s cash position as well as its pension and other liabilities. The transaction is subject to approval by the European and American competition authorities.
Air Liquide says the Lurgi acquisition is an important step in reaching the company’s recently announced objectives. By strengthening the group’s resources in hydrogen markets and providing access to the Coal-to-Liquid* (CTL) and Coal-to-Chemicals (CTC) sectors, the acquisition will enable the group to accelerate growth in its Large Industries World Business Line.
Lurgi, a German-based company, has a particularly large portfolio of technologies, from producing hydrogen and synthesis gas to biofuel production processes such as bio-ethanol and bio-diesel. Lurgi is also a world leader in the CTL and CTC processes, which enable the transformation of coal into liquid hydrocarbons (CTL) or basic chemical products (CTC), and begins with the gasification of coal using oxygen and steam. All of Lurgi’s most important technological processes consume large quantities of oxygen, making it an attractive fit with Air Liquide’s existing products and services.
Air Liquide designs, develops and builds its own gas production units in its five Engineering and Construction centers in the major markets around the world (France, United States, Japan, China and India). Gas production units are also designed and manufactured for external customers, making Air Liquide a regular partner with Lurgi for many years, with the most recent jointly-developed projects undertaken in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia.
“The acquisition of Lurgi gives us the capacity to support the important growth of the Group. It also enables us to widen our technical competencies,” said François Darchis, Member of the Air Liquide group’s Executive Committee, who is also responsible for the group’s Engineering and Construction. “Doubling in size and thanks to the complementary nature of our respective geographic presences, as well as our technology portfolios, our Engineering division will be better placed to ensure the design and manufacture of very large units, which are especially important in new markets. Our capacity to innovate, in R&D as well as technology, is a key growth driver for the Group.”
