Talde makes run of exits

Spanish private equity firm Talde has achieved a hattrick of realisations in the last month, realising its holdings in Construcciones y Promociones Balzola, Industrial Salva SA, and the Auvol group.

Talde has sold its 15 per cent holding it acquired in 1991 in Construcciones y Promociones Balzola SA to other shareholders in the firm. Founded in 1990, Balzola has been involved in a number of landmark construction projects including the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and the city’s highly successful Metro railway. Balzola has undergone major expansion in recent years and now registers turnover of over €100 million.

Talde acquired its 13.5 per cent holding in Industrial Salva SA, a Guipúzcoa-based producer of bakery equipment in 1996. Since then the firm has helped the group expand and improve its ability to compete internationally. Today, the business exports its products to over 80 countries worldwide and has subsidiaries in Chile and France

Talde also recently divested its 49 per cent holding in Auvol, a Volkswagen and Skoda car dealer group located in Vizcaya, by selling its shares to the company’s main shareholders.

Following these exits Talde now manages resources worth €73 million. It has holdings in 32 businesses, with a total investment of over €42 million. Talde recently shared out a first interim dividend charged to the group’s financial results for 2002 equivalent to 4.5 per cent of its capital. The total dividend for the year is expected to reach nine per cent.