Eurofins expands in Balkans with acquisition of Slovenia’s ERICo

Source: seenews.com

LJUBLJANA (Slovenia), June 23 (SeeNews) – Eurofins Scientific, the global leader in environment testing, is expanding in the Balkans by signing an agreement to acquire Slovenia’s Environmental Research & Industrial Co-operation (ERICo), previously a part of the Gorenje Group’s ecology division, Gorenje said on Friday. Prior to the transaction, the Gorenje Group owned a 51% stake in ERICo, while the remainder was held by Sostanj power plant and Colliery Velenje coal mine. This acquisition will give ERICo the opportunity for a further stable development as a part of a leading global corporation in the field of environment, food and pharmaceuticals testing, the household appliances manufacturer said in a Ljubljana bourse filing. Founded 25 years ago, ERICo, the leading independent laboratory for environment testing services in Slovenia, employs 46 staff at its laboratory in Velenje, and serves primarily the largest industrial companies including power plants and coal mines, as well as municipalities. “We believe ERICo will benefit from becoming part of the Eurofins Group, and getting access to its wide range of technical expertise and its network capabilities”, Marijan Pensek, executive vice president at Gorenje, said. “We look forward to continued collaboration between Eurofins and ERICo’s former shareholders, the Gorenje Group, Termoelektrarna Sostanj  and Premogovnik Velenje.” For Eurofins, this acquisition provides a good entry into the analytical testing market in Slovenia and reinforces their footprint in central and eastern Europe, the company CEO, Gilles Martin, said. “We are looking forward to contributing to, and strengthening ERICo’s position in its market, as well as expanding the portfolio of tests it offers to customers by offering the full range of services and capabilities of the Group”, he noted. Eurofins employs 28,000 staff in 310 laboratories across 39 countries, and offers a portfolio of over 130,000 analytical methods for evaluating the safety, identity, composition, authenticity, origin and purity of biological substances and products, as well as for innovative clinical diagnostic. – See more at: https://seenews.com/news/eurofins-expands-in-balkans-with-acquisition-of-slovenias-erico-573347#sthash.5fQXKdI2.dpuf