Vivendi services floated

Disposal spells growth nonwoven business Over the summer

for

Vivendi Services floated Although

French

postponed

the

UK based BBA

respective global markets. The group

Environment

Group plc disposed of the last of its

intends to drive the growth of these

July/August

engineering

divisions

by extending

low-ered

graphical

reach,

operations,

to concentrate

on its core business-

es, one of which Technology filter

enabling it

is its Materials

division

media

that includes

manufacturer

technologies

their

investing

in new

The proceeds

be used to pay off existing

BBA now consists of two focused divisions: Materials Technology

and

debt.

However,

Robert

Quarta,

group

according

to

BBA’s CEO, some

the

billion

($2.3

sitions,

The company

and

particularly

in the nonwo-

ven filtration market.

billion

and El .8 billion

for those requesting

of convertible

scribers,

bonds.

said it had attracted

approximately

600

000

sub-

and the final demand was

8 billion

put at f5

Suez buy-out complete

at

($5.2

The main reason

French

utilities

group

Suez

Lyonnaise des Eaux has completed its acquisition Resources

of United

Inc (UWR),

terms

of the contract

will acquire

a 90%

Lyonniase stake

Water

water

company

the second

mento

for El 1 I million

Manaus

action valued at US$l.O2

million) is planned for the duration

UWR

receive

of the agree-

shareholders

will

$35 .OO in cash for each

common

or common

equivalent

share held, plus a special dividend

of $0.30

closing

per common

share and stub period dividends of approximately share

$0.19

and ~0.05

share. UWR

per common

per

will retain its corpoto oper-

ate under the leadership

of chair-

(CEO)

executive

Donald Correll.

when it became

officer

According

to Suez, this acquisition ens the alliance

strength-

formed

in 1994

a principle

share-

holder in UWR. The

deal

of the contract, improving

the

recent

water ser-

group’s

water

also

$8.1

billion dollars

(Filtrotion+Seporation,

May 2000,

p.10).

International Contracts Lyonnaise

des

Eaux,

a sub-

10%

the

city’s

Commenting Gerard

on the contract

Payen, chairman

mem-

and brackish

and CEO

be capital&d

at USs7

Toray Industries

million with

Inc owning

5 1%

of the Water Division said the deal

and Ionics Inc and Mitsui owning 43%

step forward

of the

and 6%,

respectively.

opening up of the Brazilian water

will lease manufacturing

sector

Watertown

to private sector

participa-

tion. In

the

Republic

of

Korea,

des Eaux has also been

named the preferred

bidder for a

ment

of three

will process

It

covers

the

and manage-

sewage plants that 75 000 m’ of waste

Ionics

space at its

player that was already in the USA ~ does any

facility to the new com-

Vivendi’s rival Suez Lyonnaise

venture

incorporate

Toray’s proprietary

manufacturing

technology.

ofYang&,

of Kyonggi.

The

ture of RO membrane

German

sample

cialist Retsch

preparation

The

new

Retsch

first international

wastewater

der in the Republic of Korea.

ten-

modules

produced

Watertown

facility will be sold in

in

the

and South .America and the

Caribbean. According

to

Toray,

global

demand of RO membrane

elements

stands at about Y30 billion (US$250 million),

with

demand

coming

Central

40 ~ 45%

of the

from

North,

and South America.

It has

shown that the demand

and analysis granules.

range

will of

preparation

of dry powders

has

ilar rate in the future.

The new company creating

and

with being

Europe

made

Rheinische

in western America. TtdlTd0gy

StraJ3e 36,

HCWI, +49

global

arrangements

Rersch

O-43781 Tel:

is currently

and

Contact:

GmbH,

off

an international

network, already

called

GrnbH

GmbH’s

for sample

divi-

business.

company

extend products

spe-

GmbH & Co KG has

Technology

by

annual sales of

several billion yen by 2005. The RO

Particle analysis business spun

Retsch

is said to be the

this month and is

to achiew

year and is expected to rise at a sim-

modulesThe

production lines will be modified to

population in this area is forecast to 100 000 to 400 000

RO TMA

risen at a rate of more than 10% per

lines for the manufac-

sion as an independent

in the

des

production

supplied to the County

services

sugwith

been

set up its Retsch Technology

2016. The contract

other reports is in contact

pany, and will sell TMA its existing

per day. The water services will be

in the province

an

a large

Eaux.

North

is a significant

rise from

2000

osmosis (RO)

for seawater

will

The joint venture company will

water

September

which

water desalination in the USA.

only

won a

4

Inc (TMA),

Membrane

of

serve

to manage

Brazilian city of Manaus. Under the

Toray

branes

30.year

and wastewater

USA, has

with

make reverse

sidiary of Suez, has recently contact

together

that currently

contract.

approximately

Ionics Inc, Massachusetts, joined

treatment

(BOT)

of

would

of this sound familiar?

RO membrane

intends to develop the wastewater

design, construction

revenues

priority, be

partner

America

company

services

the US market

ideal

urban

sion

annual

entering

to

chairman,

was not an immediate

forecast

activities into a unified, global diviwith

although

RWE’s

begins production

The

initial

Kuht,

(USA) Inc to formTorav

areas.

the

Dietmar

Industries of Japan and Mitsui & Co

build, operate and transfer

of the

despite

by Vivendi. According

of the city and expanding it to peri-

24.year

alignment

Environment, rejection

vices to the I 2 million inhabitants

Lyonnaise

follows

($280

with the aims of

the drinking

However,

utility group is

in acquiringvivendi

Interestingly

investors.

Enviro-

pro-

million

population.

preference

rate identity and continue

man and chief

investment

the German

still interested

gest that RWE

of a lack of demand from

institutional

US were

In a further twist it appears that RWE,

to

because

year’s of

about Vivendi

was said to be

Sanea(US$lO4

million).

Under the terms

($32.37)

last

acquisition

nment’s debt loading.

European

($29-32)

gramme

ment,

636.41

to

the

partly

Filter because some investors

positioned

f33-36

largest private watei. services com-

billion.

An

from

also

billion

billion).

in the

pany in the US, in an all-cash trans-

of E300

price

$6.2

that Vivendi

delayed the IPO and cut the share

were

attributable

billion),

f2.S

investors

(S 1.6 billion)

said to have leading positions

in their

offering

billion) for retail and institu-

tional

to one media report,

concerned the

of

conversion

prospects

its flotation

(US$3.9

comprising

of the funds will be used for acqui-

growth

p. 4) twice and

price,

set

Aviation Services, both of which are

strong

according problems

(F~lrrat~onfSeporation, 2000,

Vivendi f4.3

for the sale will

Vivendi

of Vivendi

finally went ahead.

and offering customers

unique packages of services.

BBA

NO~WOWIS.

geo-

group IPO

2129

Germany. 55610;

Fax: +49 2129 5561 86.

Filtration+Separation