UK: Bristol-based refrigerant supplier A-Gas International has acquired US company Coolgas Inc, a leading independent supplier and distributor of refrigerants to the US market.
The transaction represents the fifth strategic acquisition completed by A-Gas so far in 2012, and forms part of the Group's acquisitive growth strategy. The enlarged group will have a turnover of around £130m and 237 employees.

Founded in 1994, Coolgas has grown over the past 18 years to become one of the leading independent distributors of refrigerants in the US. Coolgas has recently commissioned a new refrigerant storage and packaging facility in Houston and has distribution centres in California, Utah, Arizona, Indiana, Michigan, Maryland and Georgia ensuring that Coolgas is close to its customers wherever they are located.

In recent years Coolgas has also become an EPA registered reclaimer of refrigerants and a project developer for the generation of carbon offsets on the California Climate Action Reserve exchange.

The acquisition builds on A-Gas' acquisition of Ohio based refrigerant reclaimer and halocarbon management specialist RemTec International in July of this year. An A-Gas statement says that Coolgas provides a strong strategic fit, bringing a strong brand and complementary footprint that will accelerate refrigerants sales growth. It goes on to say that the reclaim and carbon credits businesses extend A-Gas' existing operations in the US Environmental Services market which is already well established in the UK and Europe.

As well as Coolgas and RemTec, A-Gas also purchased Australian based Technochem in March and SA Rural in May 2012, and UK based A-Zone Technologies in April 2012.

Commenting on the acquisition, Jon Masters, regional managing director of A-Gas International, said: 'The acquisition of Coolgas will significantly strengthen our position as the leading independent global supplier of refrigerants at a time when regulatory changes are providing increasing opportunities for reclamation and recycling of used refrigerants using our market leading technology developed in the UK.'