Suppliers (February 05, 2007)

Orica wraps up Minova deal

Explosives, paint and chemicals firm Orica has cleared all the hurdles necessary to complete the $857-million acquisition of U.K. mining chemicals provider Minova.

Minova will operate as a standalone company for two years and then it will be folded into Orica’s Mining Services division. Minova managers will report directly to Graeme Liebelt, Orica’s managing director and chief executive.

Orica said in October that the deal includes an additional $13 million in acquisition costs.

Minova supplies specialty chemical products — including resin capsules, powders and injection chemicals — for use in stabilization and ventilation systems in underground mines and other engineering projects, such as tunnelling.

Its sales are mostly in Europe, the U.S. and Australia.

Orica says, however, that Minova has a foothold in high-growth markets such as Russia, Kazakhstan and China where there was an increasing focus on the efficiency and safety of underground mining.

Orica recently bought parts of Dyno Nobel’s commercial explosives business.

Orica’s Orica Mining Services unit offers commercial explosives, initiating systems and blast-based services to the mining, quarrying and construction industries.