Many changes at Westbourne

Montreal-based Westburne has announced the execution of an agreement for its acquisition by Rexel S.A. for $987 million. The transaction should be completed by the end of September 2000. Westburne, which distributes electrical, plumbing, refrigeration, HVAC and industrial supplies in Canada and the United States, has approximately 6,000 employees and a network of 546 branches, including 143 branches in the United States. The French company Rexel, a distributor of electrical supplies, generates revenues of $8.5 billion, 70 per cent of which is from outside France. With a presence on four continents and in 30 countries, the company has 20,000 employees and a network of more than 1,600 branches. This transaction will enable it to reinforce its position in North America.

In an earlier move, Westburne completed two acquisitions, one in Quebec and one in Minnesota, and executed two letters of intent for two other acquisitions, in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, respectively. Two acquisitions are for the company’s Electrical Group in the United States. A letter of intent has been executed for the purchase of the assets of Anesco, a distributor of electrical supplies based in Kingston, Pa. Westburne also executed a letter of intent for the purchase of the shares of the SPT Electric group of companies based in Princeton, N.J. For its Refrigeration and HVAC Group, the company completed the purchase of the assets of Lincoln Distribution from International Comfort Corporation (Canada). In addition, Westburne completed, for its Plumbing and Waterworks Group in the United States, the acquisition of the assets of Industrial Piping Supply, Virginia, Minn.