Sale price estimated at between US$51.5 million and US$58 million

Durrant Pate/Contributor

Trinidad and Tobago (T&T)-based distribution conglomerate Massy Holdings has bought the T&T business of French company, Air Liquide International S.A.

The Board of Directors of Massy on November 28 approved the acquisition of Air Liquide, Trinidad and Tobago Limited by Massy Gas Produ­cts Holdings Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Massy Group.

Also on that day, Massy Gas Products entered into a share purchase agreement with Air Liquide International to purchase 100 per cent of the share capital of Air Liquide T&T for US$51.5 million – US$58 million.

Payment of the higher end range related to an earn-out that is payable annually based on additional value considerations being met. Completion of the transition remains subject­ to regulatory approval by the Trinidad and Tobago Fair Trading Commission.

Air Liquide T&T makes and supplies oxygen, nitrogen and argon gases to commercial clients. The 30 workers it employed there will be integrated into Massy Gas, the French company said in a statement.

Air Liquide operations

Air Liquide International operates in 75 countries with more than 66,400 employees. Its revenue amounted to more than €23 billion in 2021. The company sees its future in renewables and is bullish on investment opportunities, having pinpointed opportunities in Latin America for its “clean energy transition”, including hydrogen.

According to the statement, “this transaction is part of Air Liquide’s strategy to regularly review its asset portfolio and focus on selected fast developing areas and activities”.

The Massy group has five main operating segments – retail, gas products, motor and machines, financial services and real estate.

The gas segment earns revenue from liquefied petroleum gases, and industrial gases such as nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide. The segment also engages in the build out of oil projects for gas and mining clients.

Massy Holdings says the Air Liquide deal aligns with Massy Gas core operations, noting that the acquisition would grow group profit by about three per cent and assets by 11 per cent. At year ending September, Massy Holdings made a profit of TT$723 million and held assets of TT$12.7 billion.

For the gas products portfolio, the acquisition is expected to increase its pretax profit by 14 per cent.