HÀ NỘI — Swiss giant cement producer LafargeHolcim has agreed to sell its entire 65-per-cent ownership in the joint-venture LafargeHolcim Việt Nam to Thailand’s Siam City Cement Public Co Ltd.

LafargeHolcim Việt Nam is valued at 867 million Swiss franc (on a 100 per cent basis) (more than US$890 million).

“Closing of the transaction Việt Nam is subject to customary regulatory and shareholder approvals, as well as to a right of first refusal of LafargeHolcim’s joint venture partner,” LafargeHolcim said in a statement on Wednesday.

The deal is expected to occur in the fourth quarter of this year, the Swiss cement producer said.

Joint venture Holcim Việt Nam was founded in 1994 with an initial capital of $233.8 million. Two shareholders were Holcim and Việt Nam Cement Industry Corp (Vicem).

Swiss-owned Holcim Việt Nam late last year merged with the French-owned Lafarge Việt Nam after the two parent companies completed a merger in July 2015.

The new joint venture, named LafargeHolcim Việt Nam, became the largest foreign-owned cement producer in Việt Nam, operating one integrated plant and four grinding plants with an annual cement grinding capacity of 6.3 million tonnes.

The company is also a leading ready-mix concrete producer operating seven plants in the south of Vietnam.

LafargeHolcim, located in Jona of Switzerland, is the world leader in the building material industry, presents in 90 countries and focuses on cement, aggregates and concrete.

The Swiss cement producer has 100,000 employees around the world and recorded combined net sales of 29.5 billion Swiss franc last year.

Siam City Cement Public Co Ltd (SCCC), the second largest cement producer in Thailand, was founded in 1969. The company has expanded its operations into some of the Asian markets such as Indonesia and Cambodia, and has a turnover of $908 million last year. — VNS