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SGF becomes a shareholder of Vézina Composites; a $14 million investment project
Montréal, May 29, 2000 - Société générale de financement du Québec (SGF) announced today that it has acquired a 33% minority interest in Vézina Composites, a company specializing in developing and producing parts made of highly engineered composite materials. This $2.5 million investment by SGF is part of a $14 million CAN expansion program that will ultimately create 125 new jobs and increase the company’s presence in the energy, recreational, building and transportation sectors.
Vézina Composites was founded in 1987 and currently has 62 employees. It has developed unique expertise in replacing steel parts for the energy sector. It received the Outstanding Supplier Performance award for the second consecutive year from GE Power Systems in Atlanta. In 1998, Vézina Composites completed the acquisition of the Centre des Matériaux Composites (CMC) in Saint-Jérôme, the only R&D centre in Canada devoted exclusively to the development of composites. The CMC is behind a large number of innovations in its sector.
"This is a promising project in an emerging markets sector, said Claude Blanchet, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Société générale de financement du Québec. Reinforced plastics for structural applications are relatively new and offer high added value. Because of Vézina Composites’ technological advances, the door is open to replacing numerous products traditionally made of steel, cast iron, cement or wood", explained Blanchet.
Yvon Vézina said he is very pleased with SGF’s involvement. "The whole team here is convinced that this partnership will help the company achieve new objectives", he stated.
In addition to contributing to the development of the Saint-Hyacinthe and Saint-Jérôme regions, the project will increase Quebec’s leadership in the composite market and help Vézina Composites reach the scale required to operate on a North American basis.
The mission of Société générale de financement du Québec is to realize economic development projects meeting normal profitability requirements, in collaboration with business partners. Since it was restructured in 1998, SGF has generated investments of about $2 billion, leading to the creation of over 9,000 direct and indirect jobs in the operating phase, not counting the thousands of jobs created during the construction phase. As of December 31, 1999, SGF’s consolidated assets totalled close to $2 billion. SGF has 40 international partners operating in Québec.
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Source :
Sylvie Brousseau
Communications and Public Relations
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