Siam Cement to Buy Stakes In Indonesia's Keramika, Kokoh

BANGKOK, KOMPAS.com -Thailand's industrial conglomerate Siam Cement PCL said Friday its wholly owned units have entered into conditional agreements to purchase majority stakes in two listed Indonesian firms, Keramika Indonesia Asosiasi Tbk and Kokoh Inti Arebama Tbk.

SCG Building Materials Ltd. has agreed to acquire 7.88 billion shares, or 93.47% stake, in Keramika while SCG Distribution Ltd. will acquire 690 million shares, or 70.35% stake, in Kokoh, Siam Cement said in a statement to the Stock Exchange of Thailand.

Pricing will be set later and the deal is expected to completed within two months, the statement said.

“The acquisition shows SCG's strategic commitment to grow and enhance its capabilities and offerings within Asean, including Indonesia. SCG continues to focus on the acquisition of strategic assets which has synergistic potential with its existing business units,“ the statement said.

Keramika is one of the top five players in the Indonesian ceramic market, with a current market share of 10% with three plants located in west Java near Jakarta and in east Java near Surabaya. It has a combined production capacity of 27 million square meters of ceramics tiles and 23 million pieces of ceramic roof tiles and accessories.

Following this acquisition, Siam Cement will have a total ceramics production capacity of 149 million square meters. Its Indonesian-based capacity will increase to 31 million square meters from 4 million square meters at present, the statement said.

Kokoh is an Indonesia-based distributor with a nationwide network of stores specializing in building materials including ceramic walls, floors, and roof tiles, sanitary ware, paint, and gypsum boards.