Carmeuse closes acquisition of Oglebay-Norton

by Peter Jakey– Managing Editor

Calcite plant officials believe Carmeuse Lime & Stone?s acquisition of Oglebay Norton, which became official February 13, could bring more stability to the local operation. With the ink not completely dry on the dotted lines, there?s still some uncertainty about what the next steps are going to be, but based on the track record of the privately owned company, the deal has brought a lot of optimism about what the future has in store.

Carmeuse Lime & Stone, which has its North American headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is the largest subsidiary of the parent company, Carmeuse Group, located in Louvain-l-Neuve, Belgium. Carmeuse was announced as the successful bidder for Oglebay Norton October 12 with a bid price of $36 per share. ?This is a big deal for Carmeuse,? said Joe Chevreaux, Calcite Operations? general manager. ?They acquired a company that is bigger than what they had already in North America.?

Mike Miclette, who was vice president and general manager of the Great Lakes Division for O-N Minerals, said there are ?no guarantees? about what could happen, but local officials are not expecting a lot of changes locally. ?What is going to happen at this location in regard to day-to-day changes, is probably not a lot,? said Miclette Friday. ?There?s going to be a new sign out front, and the business cards are going to look different.? Chevreaux said, ?Everything we had in place before the sale was finalized is still in place.?

MICLETTE AND Chevreaux have been in Pittsburgh since the beginning of the week for introductory meetings, ?so we can get acquainted with the Carmeuse folks, and they can get acquainted with us and talk about the operations and the best way to drive the business.? The only major changes have been at the top, with Carmeuse exercising their separation agreements with three corporate officers, including chief executive officer Mike Lundin, who worked at the Rogers City plant for many years before transferring to O-N Minerals? headquarters in Cleveland. Carmeuse will use the acquisition to expand its offering to the growing flue gas desulfurization market, and to diversify its business base with product lines in filler materials and industrial sands.

?One of many reasons they bought the business was the long-life proven reserves of the Michigan quarries,? said Miclette. ?Certainly it is not the only reason, and I can?t tell you if it is the biggest reason, but it?s certainly part of it. Reserves in the mining industry are important. We?ve got long-life proven reserves.?

FLUE GAS desulfurization is the current technology used for removing sulfur dioxide from the exhaust flue gases in power plants that burn coal. One of the methods of removing the sulfur dioxide is wet scrubbing using a slurry or sorbent, which is usually lime or limestone. The Clean Air Act is being being phased in by power companies but will bring more demand.

?It is a growing part of our business,? said Miclette. ?More and more coal fired power plants will be having scrubber stacks.?

?They?ve invested a lot of money, and they did it for a reason. It is a good business. There is a good team of people.?

A number of employees at the Calcite Operation hav

e been with the company through a handful of name changes. While that may be true, Chevreaux believes it is the best thing that could have happened. ?This is a more stable arrangement than a publicly traded company that is subject to stock fluctuations and stock prices,? said Chevreaux. ?With Carmeuse there are no stock prices because there is no stock. It is a family owned company. ?They?re not going to make decisions based upon the stock market. They make decisions based upon what?s in the best interest of their company. There?s a lot more stability. I?m kind of excited. I think it is a good deal for the future.?

HARBINGER CAPITAL Partners attempted to acquire Oglebay-Norton with an unsolicited bid of $31 a share. Chevreaux said Carmeuse has made its business in the mining industry. ?It is their culture, it?s in their DNA, to do this type of work. People at Harbinger never saw a stone in their life. Carmeuse is here because they want to be in the rock business.? Carmeuse also was one of O-N Minerals? biggest customers. The Calcite plant employees about 150 people, 16 of which are not part of the normal winter maintenance. Regarding benefits, Miclette said, ?Carmeuse is going to retain Oglebay Norton?s benefit package at least through this year, and then it will be evaluated.? .