- Deal volume in Latin America fell 7% in April 2017 over April 2016
- Aggregate deal value increased 223%
- Deal of the Month: OMERS acquires 34.6% stake in GNL Quintero
TTR Insight
According to TTR, from January to April 2017, deal volume in the Argentine Oil and Gas sector increased 450% over the same period last year. Specifically, there were two transactions in the first four months of 2016 compared to 11 in the same period in 2017.
Deal volume is up 4.7% YTD in Latin America with a total of 668 announced and closed transactions in the first four months of 2017. The aggregate value of the 257 transactions with a disclosed consideration region wide has increased 124%, meanwhile, compared to the same January-April period in 2016.
Top Six M&A Markets in Latin America
Brazil leads the top six most active M&A markets with 342 deals together worth USD 35.7bn YTD, up 5% by volume and 292% by aggregate value compared to the same four-month period in 2016.
Mexico and Chile are tied with a total of 87 announced and closed deals apiece to the close of April, though with USD 8.7bn in aggregate value from 34 deals of disclosed consideration, the region’s largest Spanish-speaking market nearly triples the USD 3bn sum of the 37 deals of disclosed value recorded in Chile YTD.
Deal volume is up 5% in Mexico, while aggregate value is down 2% compared to the January-April period in 2016. In Chile, deal volume is up 28% YTD while aggregate value has declined 53% relative to the first four months of 2016.
Argentina is but eight deals behind Mexico and Chile with 79 transactions recorded in the first four months of the year, up 25% over the corresponding period last year. Aggregate deal value is up 75% in Argentina to USD 3.1bn, putting it just ahead of its Southern Cone neighbor by the total consideration of all transactions in the country in the first four months of the year.
Colombia is down 19% by deal volume and up 281% by aggregate value with a total of 44 transactions to the close of April, 16 with disclosed consideration worth a combined USD 11.8bn.
Peru rounds out the top six M&A markets in the region, despite a 30% decline in deal volume to 35 and a 37% fall in aggregate value to USD 1.1bn, taking into account the 19 transactions of disclosed consideration.
Cross-Border Deals
Latin American firms made four outbound acquisitions in April 2017, two with targets based in North America, one in Africa and one in Australia. Inbound acquisitions were led predominantly by North American buyers, with 25 deals led by firms based in the US or Canada, followed by the EU, represented by 19 transactions, Asia with six and Australia with two buyers targeting companies in Latin America.
Deal of the Month
TTR selected Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System’s acquisition of a 34.6% stake in Chile-based GNL Quintero from Enagás Chile and ENAP for USD 341m through its Borealis Infrastructure fund as Deal of the Month. GNL Quintero operates a liquefied natural gas reception, storage and regasification terminal. Claro y Cia. Abogados advised the buyer while ENAP was advised by Philippi, Prietocarrizosa Ferrero DU & Uría Chile and Enagás Chile by CMS Carey & Allende.
Interview with Luis Felipe Arze from CMS Carey & Allende
(Interview in spanish)
Last year, Mérieux NutriSciences Corporation, Illinois, United States-based, acquired 65% of Chilean entity Laboratorio Labser. CMS Carey & Allende partner Luis Felipe Arze advised the buyer.
TTR in the Press
AMÉRICA ECONÓMICA – “Fusiones y adquisiciones crecen 223% en América Latina”
LA REPUBLICA – “Monto de fusiones y adquisiciones creció 124% en la región”
EL ECONOMISTA – “Mercado transaccional de AL registra aumento de 223% en abril”
Rankings – Financial and Legal Advisory
Find the TTR ranking of financial and legal advisors (year to date) in our monthly report. Click to download.
