Loan helps finance Argos acquisition of part of U.S. construction supply company Vulcan Materials; Milbank has advised on almost $10 billion in Colombia-based deals since 2012
Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy represented the administrative agent and lead arrangers in a $600 million five-year term loan to Argos USA Corp., a U.S. subsidiary of Cementos Argos SA, a Medellín, Colombia-based producer of concrete and other construction materials.
One of the largest bank financings so far this year for a Colombian company, the loan finances a substantial portion of Argos’s acquisition of the Florida cement and concrete business of Alabama-based Vulcan Materials. Vulcan is the largest U.S. supplier of construction aggregate – e.g., gravel, sand, crushed stone and other components of concrete and asphalt.
Cementos Argos has concrete and cement production facilities in Colombia, Central America, the U.S. and the Caribbean.
Milbank represented the administrative agent HSBC Bank USA National Association and lead arrangers Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., Itaú BBA USA Securities, Inc. and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC.
Carlos Albarracín, a partner in the Global Securities and Latin America practice groups, led the Milbank team on the transaction, which closed February 28. The deal brings Milbank’s total Colombia-based transactions to nearly $10 billion since 2012.
Mr. Albarracín said, “This term loan is a critical step in the expansion of Cementos Argos into the U.S. construction market, and we are delighted to work with a stellar cast of international underwriters to assure its successful completion. Milbank is enjoying a strong run of corporate, finance, project finance and capital markets work in Colombia, and across Latin America, of which this particular transaction is a significant part.”
Working with Mr. Albarracín were Leveraged Finance partner Michael Bellucci and associates Rebecca Silver and Josh Savitz, and Global Securities international attorney Juan Turner.
About Milbank
Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is a leading international law firm providing innovative legal solutions to clients throughout the world for more than 140 years. Milbank is headquartered in New York and has offices in Beijing, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Munich, São Paulo, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington, DC.
Milbank's Latin America Practice Group is one of the most successful and diverse in the region. The group’s attorneys have advised clients on some of the largest and most innovative transactions across the Americas. Attorneys in the group specialize in securities, M&A, project finance, private placements, litigation & arbitration.
