With the acquisition of O-tek Internacional (Medellin, Colombia; www.o-tek.com), Autrian building materials group Wietersdorfer (Klagenfurt; www.wietersdorfer.com) has expanded its business with glass fibre reinforced plastic pipes, moving into the Latin American market after expanding into Africa two years ago. Wietersdorfer did not give details of the purchase price. The seller is Imsa Group, a Colombian conglomerate. 

The acquisition gives the Austrian company two production sites in Turbaco, Colombia, and Aguascalientes, Mexico, as well as a 25% stake in a plant in Córdoba, Argentina. O-tek employs 600 and anticipates annual sales of around USD 100 mn in 2023. The buyer expects great potential from the Latin American market for glass-fibre reinforced plastic pipes in view of numerous projects in the drinking water and wastewater sector. 

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At Wietersdorfer, O-tek is set to be the third company in the GRP pipes business segment, together with Hobas (Klagenfurt, Austria; www.hobas.com) and Amiblu (Klagenfurt; www.amiblu.com). The GRP segment reportedly generated revenues of EUR 403 mn in 2022, 41% of the total group revenue of EUR 974 mn. The other plastics-relevant division, polypropylene pipe systems, accounted for sales of EUR 112 mn.