PPG Industries, Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.; www.ppg.com) has reached a definitive agreement to sell the assets of its flat glass manufacturing and glass coatings operations to Vitro S.A.B. de C.V., a leading producer of flat glass and specialty products. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2016, subject to customary closing conditions.
Under the terms of the agreement, PPG will divest its entire flat glass manufacturing and glass coatings operations, including production sites located in Fresno, California; Salem, Oregon; Carlisle, Pennsylvania; and Wichita Falls, Texas; four distribution/fabrication facilities located across Canada; and a research-and-development center located in Harmar, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh. PPG’s flat glass business includes approximately 1,200 employees. The business manufactures glass that is fabricated into products used primarily in commercial and residential construction.
“This transaction represents the end of an historic era for PPG as a manufacturer of flat glass, and it is another major step in our portfolio transformation to focus on paints, coatings and specialty materials,” said Michael H. McGarry, PPG president and chief executive officer. “Upon completion of this transaction, the flat glass operations will become part of a company that is focused on growing its core glass business.”
PPG will receive approximately $750 million in gross cash proceeds. Upon completion of this transaction and PPG’s recently announced transaction to divest its European fiber glass operations, approximately 98 percent of PPG’s business portfolio will be focused on paints, coatings and specialty materials.