Fenner to buy Unipoly Enerka

HULL, England (Oct. 22)—Belting maker Fenner P.L.C. is acquiring conveyor belt manufacturer Unipoly Enerka in a $68.5 million deal that will make Fenner the world's largest supplier of conveyor belting. Unipoly Enerka consists largely of former BTR P.L.C. production units that were part of the creation of Unipoly S.A. in 1997, but also includes Georgia Duck-Enerka in Scottdale, Ga., which was acquired in 1998. The deal, which includes rights to the Dunlop name for conveyor belting, will add nearly $170 million in sales to Fenner's accounts and belting plants in Melbourne, Australia; Drachten, Netherlands; Tournai, Belgium; and Atlanta, as well as a rubber compounding facility in Farrington, England. Fenner will pay $18 million for Unipoly Enerka's assets and $50.5 million to partially cover external debts of $120 million. Upon completion of the deal, Fenner will pay an additional sum—up to $10.8 million—based on the value of the net assets at that time. "Fenner is now a global conveying and industrial motion control group specializing in the manufacture and distribution of reinforced polymer products," Fenner CEO Mark Abrahams said in a prepared statement. Fenner's existing operations include Scandura belting plants in Charlotte, N.C.; Port Clinton and Toledo, Ohio; and Bracebridge, Ontario.