INTERVIEW – In an exclusive interview Le Figaro , CEO of the French cement group is due to the renegotiation of the merger agreements with Holcim. He said the compromise reached in the early hours Friday respects nature “among equals” of this operation
LE FIGARO. – Lafarge had consent to vis-à-vis Holcim concessions. Can we still talk of a merger of equals
Bruno Lafont – Of course. Changes to our original agreements do not change the nature of our project. The exchange ratio between action Holcim and Lafarge share has certainly changed, but not significantly. Initially, Holcim had to have 52.9% of the new entity; he finally has 55.6%. And balance of governance is maintained. As expected, the executive committee will include five former Lafarge and Holcim five former. And the board seven former Lafarge and seven former Holcim. Will be headquartered in Zurich but the center of R & amp; D will be located in France and there will be a balanced distribution of central functions between the two countries. The spirit remains the same as last year. This new agreement perhaps even better, by incorporating the necessary changes.
Why did you agree to be non-operational co-chair while initially you were to become the director General LafargeHolcim?
A Matter of person could not block the project. So I had little difficulty in making this choice. This group is all my life. I love him and I love his teams. I am passionate about this, and I do everything for it to succeed. I’ll invest in this function therefore completely co-chair, also larger in Switzerland than in a French group. With my 30 years experience in the cement industry, I expect maximum contribution to this board, including international and emerging markets, two areas that I know well.
But you had to be affected by criticism about you, and those that emphasized the lower performance of Lafarge …
No one likes this kind of attack. But I do not want to return. I have the chance to forget very quickly! This is already ancient history. As a family, you have to turn the page.
Read the full interview Le Figaro to be published Saturday, March 21, and on the web, mobile and tablets for subscribers My Figaro Digital.
No comments:
Post a Comment