OKOTOKS, AB, April 7 /CNW/ - (TSX-MTL) Mullen Group Ltd. ("Mullen Group" and/or the "Corporation") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a letter of intent to acquire Smook Bros. (Thompson) Ltd. ("Smook"), a privately owned company located in Thompson, Manitoba. Smook is a multi-disciplined heavy civil construction company that provides services such as infrastructure construction, mine site work and tailings ponds construction to the energy, natural resources and government sectors.
Smook will work closely with Mullen Group's largest subsidiary, Winnipeg based Kleysen Group L.P. ("Kleysen"), to expand Mullen Group's presence and service offerings in the Manitoba market. "Northern Manitoba is a growing market and Thompson is the 'Hub of the North'. This region continues to see a great deal of investments into hydro-electricity projects, natural resources and infrastructure development. Kleysen and Smook service many of the same customers and I look forward to working closely with their team to provide enhanced services to our key customers. I have known Ted and Chris Smook for many years and know they operate a first class company," said Jeff Kleysen, President of Kleysen.
"This acquisition is consistent with our strategy of investing in profitable and well managed businesses. Smook represents a new growth platform for our organization and expands upon our service offerings to the energy and natural resource sectors. We have an excellent team at Kleysen that understands the landscape and markets in northern Manitoba and we will rely upon their management team to provide support to Smook and capitalize on new opportunities. This combination of sound market fundamentals and strong leadership make this an attractive investment for Mullen Group," commented Mr. Murray Mullen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Mullen Group.
The transaction is subject to negotiation, execution and delivery of a Purchase and Sale Agreement and the completion of due diligence and other conditions normal for a transaction of this nature. Due diligence has already begun and is expected to be completed in the next several weeks. This acquisition is scheduled to close April 30, 2010 and is expected to increase Mullen Group's consolidated revenues by approximately $40.0 million on an annualized basis.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are subject to risk factors associated with the oil and natural gas business and the overall economy. Mullen Group believes that the expectations reflected in this press release are reasonable, but results may be affected by a variety of variables. Mullen Group relies on litigation protection for "forward-looking" statements.
Mullen Group is a company that owns a network of independently operated businesses. Today the Mullen Group is recognized as the largest provider of specialized transportation and related services to the oil and natural gas industry in western Canada and as one of the leading suppliers of trucking and logistics services in Canada - two sectors of the economy in which Mullen Group has strong business relationships and industry leadership. Mullen Group provides management and financial expertise, technology and systems support to its independent businesses.
Mullen Group is a publicly traded corporation listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "MTL". Additional information is available on our website at www.mullen-group.com.
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