Mexican cement maker Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua has bought a 46.57 percent stake in Bolivia’s top cement maker for $58.2m, the company said on Monday. Under the terms of the deal, Bolivian company Sociedad Boliviana de Cementos, or Soboce, will become an affiliate of Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua, or GCC, which already has operations in Mexico and the United States and an annual output of 3.3Mt.
The Mexican company, partially owned by world No. 3 cement producer Cemex, said the investment would serve as a platform for continued expansion in South America. "Via Soboce, we will be leaders in a fast growing market and we will have an important presence in the region," said GCC director Manuel Milan. Soboce’s annual cement production capacity is 870,000t.
