ICH acquires Republic Engineered Products

ICH acquires Republic Engineered Products

Industrias CH, S.A. de C.V (ICH) has purchased North American steelmaker Republic Engineered Products Inc. The Mexico City-based steelmaker will acquire all Republic stock shares, including those owned by majority shareholder Perry Capital. ICH intends to run Republic as a stand-alone company in the US. In an announcement on Republic's website, ICH director and CFO Sergio Vigil said, “The addition of Republic to our family of companies will give us a presence in the US for the first time." Continued Vigil, "Republic also will be a valuable resource as we pursue additional US business for our other lines of steel products.” John Willoughby, Republic’s VP of Human Resources, told SteelOrbis, “From our perspective, this merger creates an opportunity for us to have more facilitated movement with domestic customers as they expand into Mexico and South America.” Willoughby does not expect any Republic plant closures or job cuts. Republic Engineered Products, based in Akron, Ohio, is the largest special bar quality steel producer in North America, boasting a steelmaking capacity of 2.3 million tons. The company employs 2’500 workers at their steelmaking centers in Ohio, Indiana, New York, and Ontario, Canada. ICH is based in Mexico City and operates four steelmaking centers and four processing plants. Products include specialty steel long products, welded pipe, structurals, and rebar. ICH employs 3’300 people and has steelmaking capacity of 1.9 million tons. Recent company acquisitions include Grupo Simec in 2001 and the Mexican steel assets of Spain-based Corporacion Sidenor in 2004.