SÃO PAULO, Brazil--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Emergent Cold Latin America (Emergent Cold LatAm), the fastest-growing refrigerated storage and logistics service provider in Latin America, announced today the acquisition of Bodegas Frias, the largest third-party cold storage operator in Guatemala. This acquisition marks Emergent Cold LatAm’s entry into Guatemala – the largest economy in Central America with an important role in global food trade. It also represents the first of several planned investments by Emergent Cold LatAm in this important strategic market.
Founded in 2006, Bodegas Frias is the clear market leader in Guatemala. Bodegas operates three facilities in Palín, Villa Nueva and Xela (Quetzaltenango), with a total capacity of almost 20,000 pallet positions and additional land for expansion. The facilities are strategically located in the main metropolitan cities in Guatemala. Bodegas Frias offers comprehensive storage and logistics solutions including handling and transport.
This announcement is the latest in a string of acquisitions by Emergent Cold LatAm across the region. Last month, the company announced its first investment in Colombia with the acquisition of Frigometro Metropolitano, and quickly followed this up with the acquisition of Polo Logístico de Frio in Uruguay. With the addition of Bodegas Frias, Emergent Cold LatAm now operates in a total of nine countries, inclusive of new builds under way in Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Perú.
“We are thrilled to welcome the Bodegas Frias team to our growing regional network of cold stores,” said Neal Rider, CEO of Emergent Cold LatAm. “Guatemala is an important part of our Central America investment strategy for its growing domestic consumption and its role in global trade, and we’re particularly pleased to partner with the country’s premier operator. I wish to congratulate Bodegas Frias management team for his great success. I also wish to acknowledge and thank our partners at Losa Group, who provided valuable support and guidance throughout this process.”
“We see enormous opportunities in Guatemala,” said David Palfenier, President of Emergent Cold LatAm. “There is strong customer demand for follow-on investments that will both develop Guatemala’s growing distribution network, and improve connectivity with the Ports of Puerto Barrios and Santo Tomás. Bodegas Frias is the perfect anchor investment for our ambitious regional plans.”
44 Capital Finanças Corporativas acted as financial advisor and BLP acted as legal advisor to Emergent Cold LatAm.
About Emergent Cold LatAm:
Emergent Cold Latin America (www.emergentcold.com) is building a world-class, end-to-end refrigerated storage chain to provide logistic integrated solutions for refrigerated food for clients throughout Latin America. The Company was founded to meet the modern solutions needs in refrigerated chain and the growing demand of clients in domestic and foreign trade.
