2011 Annual Report - Italcementi Group

The Calcestruzzi group returned to the scope of consolidation of Italcementi S.p.A. as
from January 1, 2011. With a ruling on April 20, 2011, the court of Caltanissetta ordered the
full cancellation of the preventive seizure on Calcestruzzi S.p.A. and the restitution of
company assets to the owners. In May, the Calcestruzzi S.p.A. shareholders approved a
share capital increase from 59.2 million euro to 110 million euro, which was
subscribed and simultaneously paid in full by Italcementi S.p.A. for 99.90% and by
SICIL.FIN.S.r.l. (now Italcementi Ingegneria S.r.l.) for 0.10%.
At the end of January, in view of the political unrest in Egypt, the Group suspended local
production operations for about one week.
In March Set Group Holding was sold to the Turkish group Limak Holding and Italgen
Elektrik Uretim was sold to Enerjisa (a Sabanci-Verbund joint venture).
As a result of the sale on the stock market of the shares held in Afyon Cimento Sanayii
Turk A.S., Ciments Français S.A. reduced its controlling interest from 76.51% to 51.0%. At
the end of June, Mediobanca was engaged as financial advisor for sale of the entire
remaining shareholding in the Turkish company.
In August and September respectively, Moody’s Investor Services and Standard and
Poor’s confirmed their Baa3 and BBB-/A-3 ratings assigned to Italcementi and Ciments
Français, but downgraded the outlook from stable to negative.
In September, through the Indian company Zuari Cement, the Group acquired from Zuari
Industries a 74% stake in Gulbarga Cement, a company based in the region of
Karnataka, which is planning to build a new cement plant with an annual cement capacity
of 3 million metric tons.
Significant events in the fourth quarter are described below, some of which were
illustrated in the quarterly report at September 30, 2011.
In October, Italcementi Finance S.A., the French company that acts as the Group’s
treasury vehicle, received Banque de France authorization to launch commercial paper
under a program for a maximum amount of 800 million euro. The program, with a shortterm
Moody’s NP rating and Standard & Poor’s A3 rating, is unconditionally guaranteed by
Italcementi S.p.A..
With regard to action to raise efficiency and optimize facilities, the Group formulated a
series of measures on costs designed to strengthen profit margins. These initiatives –
some of which were launched during the fourth quarter of the year – will bring benefits in
the order of 160 million euro when fully implemented.
In December, in line with the rating review policy adopted for almost all the major cement
players, Moody’s Investor Services downgraded its long-term ratings for Italcementi and
Ciments Français, and its senior unsecured ratings for Italcementi Finance and Ciments
Français to Ba1.
Also in December all operations in the sector of Axim-branded ready mixed concrete and
cement additives were sold to the Swiss group Sika. The operations in question were
organized in six companies with industrial facilities and commercial divisions active in Italy,
France, USA, Canada, Morocco and Spain, with revenue of approximately 61 million euro
in 2010 and 150 employees. The agreement also provides for a strategic partnership in
R&D, sales and marketing and the supply of additives for the Group.
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