SANTIAGO, Chile—Soudal Holdings N.V. completed its fourth acquisition of 2014 on Dec. 31, acquiring full control of its South American joint venture.
The venture includes 50 employees and sales of more than $10 million. Soudal did not release financial details of the transaction.
“The takeover in South America is for Soudal a further step in the implementation of its strategy to be present in all continents with its own subsidiaries and local production units,” Soudal CEO Dirk Coorevits said in a statement.
The venture was founded in 2005 with its local partner Christensen to develop the Chilean market for sealants, adhesives and polyurethane foams, Soudal said. With a manufacturing facility for adhesives and sealants in Santiago, the venture's headquarters, the venture has grown to operate branch offices in Peru since 2008, Colombia since 2010 and Mexico since 2010, Soudal said.
A Soudal spokesman said South America is a relatively small but fast- growing market for the Soudal group. The spokesman said the market's average annual growth rate is more than 5 percent and offers strong opportunities for the next 10 years.
“In general, Soudal prefers to be sole owner of its factories and affiliates. This gives us complete freedom in making decisions on investments with the long term as a guideline,” the spokesman said in an email.
“Soudal is ambitious in this part of the world, and a 100 percent owned company with production capacity is an excellent basis for further investments in South America.”
The spokesman said Soudal also operates its own affiliate in Brazil, established in 2012.
The acquisition caps a busy 2014 for Soudal. In February the firm purchased its Australian distributor Soudis Australia Pty.; in June the firm acquired Accumetric L.L.C. and relocated its North American unit Soudal Inc. to Accumetric's Elizabethtown, Ky., facility; and in October Soudal acquired Poland-based Bochem Sp. z.o.o.
Soudal's South American joint venture will be integrated into the holding firm's portfolio with no direct link to Soudal Inc., the spokesman said.
Headquartered in Turnhout, Belgium, Soudal said it employs more than 2,100 and operates 16 production sites in 44 countries on four continents.