Croatia: Schoenherr advises Wienerberger on signing agreement to acquire Vargon d.o.o in Croatia

With this acquisition Wienerberger is entering the Croatian market with a production site of its own and strengthening its presence in South-Eastern Europe. This enables Wienerberger to supply not only Croatia, but also the South-Eastern European markets from its regional production. Moreover, Wienerberger is building a strong position in the in-house segment in Croatia. Goran Brašnić, the current CEO and shareholder, retains a 20 % stake in Vargon.

The closing of the transaction will take place in 2022, subject to antitrust approvals and other conditions precedent typical for such transactions.

Wienerberger is a leading international supplier of building materials and infrastructure solutions, offering durable and sustainable products for new build, renovation, and infrastructure. Wienerberger shares are listed on the Official Market of the Vienna Stock Exchange. The company has been listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange since 1869 and is a pure free float company, with 100 % of the shares held in free float.

Vargon d.o.o. is a leading provider of in-house solutions for water applications and water discharge systems in Croatia. Operating from its production site near Rijeka, the family business with about 250 employees generated revenues of EUR 25.4m in 2021.

The Schoenherr team advising on this transaction included Vice Mandarić (local partner), Luka Lopičić (partner), Christoph Haid (partner), Petra Šantić (attorney at law), Ksenija Šourek (attorney at law), Dina Vlahov Buhin (attorney at law), Krešimira Krušlin Ćurić (attorney at law), Ana Mihaljević (attorney at law), Zoran Šoljaga (attorney at law), Lucija Krznar (associate) and Alan Vučkovečki (associate).

Buterin & Partneri acted as the sellers' counsel.