CRH said yesterday that it spent €366 million on acquisitions and investment in the first half of 2004 in addition to the €333 million it cost to complete the Secil joint venture deal in Portugal.
This takes its development spending in the first six months of the year to almost €700 million compared to €577 million in the same period last year and €607 million in the first half of 2002.
CRH said the businesses acquired had annualised sales of just under €400 million and up to three-quarters of those sales would impact in 2004. Chief executive Mr Liam O'Mahony said the 20 acquisitions and two capital-investment projects delivered in the first half represented a continuation of its focus "on maintaining a balance in our geographic spread".
The company spent €205 million in Europe and €161 million in the Americas. The spending was also spread over its two divisions, with €177 million spent on its materials division and €189 million on its building products division.
A breakdown of first-half spending showed that CRH spent €127 million on three deals in its European materials division. It acquired Hastag Holding, the second-largest producer of aggregates and readymixed concrete in Switzerland in January; bought Lohja Rudus, a Finnish manufacturer of concrete products, also in January; and acquired TSMK, an aggregates business in Russia.
CRH spent €78 million on five deals aimed at expanding its European products and distribution business.
These include Belgian concrete products company Ergon, Belgian brick merchant De Saegher, and British daylight and ventilation business Airvent.
In the US, the company's materials division spent €50 million on seven deals, including the acquisition of a sand and gravel pit in New York state.
The US products and distribution division invested €111 million in seven projects, including three acquisitions in its architectural products group serving the states of Florida, Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina.
It also made acquisitions in Hawaii and Chile, as well as constructing facilities in northern California and Ohio.
Mr O'Mahony said the acquisitions consolidated the company's potential for organic growth. "We look forward to what we hope will be a busy second half on the development front," he said.
