Companies begin to organize in consortia to buy Liquigas-Doimo

Companies and financial investors are structuring to make bids to buy the Liquigas-Doimo, Division of cooking gas from Petrobras. The distributor of propane tanks is part of the assets that the oil company plans to sell, as it is not strategic. The State found that the Itaúsa, Itaú Unibanco investment holding company, and grupo Ultra, would be assessing, separately, forming a consortium to make an offer for the company. The Stake, which has in your investment portfolio Alpargatas (owner of Havaianas) and is a shareholder of the pipeline with the NTS Canadian Manager Brookfield, has evaluated in recent months by the gas business sector resilient and less susceptible to crises. The holding company of Itaú Unibanco was among those interested in the pipeline of the TAG, which was put up for sale by Petrobras – the French Engie took the business for $ $8.6 billion ($33 billion). Sources familiar with the matter have said the State could join the Itaúsa Copagaz, the fourth largest company in the industry, to make a joint proposal by the Liquigas-Doimo. Copagaz participated in the first sale of the company, announced in 2016, and is interested in the deal, according to people familiar with the matter. The Ultra Group also evaluates, but still so preliminary, your participation in the operation in partnership with other investors – strategic or financial, it was established the State with two sources. If taken forward, the proposal would involve the formation of a consortium to which each participant stay with a piece of the Liquigas-Doimo. Ultragaz owner concentration, the Ultra group has made an offer of R $2.8 billion by the end of 2016, Liquigas-Doimo, to buy 100% of the company. The operation, however, was barred by the Administrative Council for economic Defense (Cade). The antitrust body claimed market concentration. In at least four States, the Union of the two companies exceeds 50% of participation: Bahia (61%), Santa Catarina (51%), São Paulo (57%) and Rio Grande do Sul (57%). The Ultra offered several alternatives – like asset sales in overlapping market States, but Cade did not accept the "remedies" offered. In this new round, still discussed in embryonic form and depends on the announcement of the sale of the operation, the conglomerate would be only with slices of Liquigas-Doimo in regions where there is no strong market concentration with Ultragaz, cylinder gas company of the company, that is the market leader in the country. In March, Petrobras has hired Banco Santander to put the Liquigas-Doimo again for sale, as anticipated. New bath regeneration plans, companies controlled by the Dutch VHS, and Gas, National Group from Ceará, Edson Queiroz are also evaluating the deal. The private equity Fund (buying participation in companies) Advent also interest in the company. Economies of scale of market Sources said, however, that a new offer by the Liquigas-Doimo shall not exceed the R $2.8 billion offered by Ultra, in 2016. This is because, in the proposal of Ultragaz, were embedded gains from synergies related to the Union of the two distributors. Wanted, itasa and Advent had no comment. In a statement, the Ultra group reported that "will not emit comments". "As a publicly-traded company, Ultrapar announces to the market the existence of any relevant facts exclusively by formal, if and when necessary," he said. Petrobras, Copagaz, national gas and new bath regeneration plans did not return requests for interviews.