BRAZIL: Shareholders in América Latina Logística SA and Rumo Logística Operadora Multimodal SA approved a merger between the two companies on May 8. A subsidiary of energy and logistics group Cosan, Rumo had announced its proposal to acquire ALL on February 24, valuing the company at R$6·96bn or R$10·18 per share.
ALL shareholders would hold 63·5% of the new company and Rumo shareholders 36·5%. According to ALL, the merger will capture synergies and enable the best use to be made of the rail and port assets of both companies, as well as unlocking investment to make better use of the ALL rail network.
Announcing the result of the votes to the stock market, ALL said it was 'important to mention' that the merger still required regulatory approval from competition authority CADE and national transport agency ANTT. The cost of the merger is estimated at RS$95m, including the expenses of 'auditors, appraisers, lawyers and other technical professionals contracted to advise on the operation'.
ALL's rail operations are currently organised as four subsidiaries providing freight services on the North, West and South networks, as well as the Paulista network in the state of São Paulo. According to provisional data, a total of 10·04 billion tonne-km were carried in the first quarter of 2014 when ALL rail operations reported an adjusted EBITDA of R$425·7m.
