A recent PricewaterhouseCoopers study (see related article on p. 4) reports the first half of 2011 established an all-time half-year record for mineral-producer mergers and acquisitions, involving almost 1,400 deals representing 71 billion dollars in value. The industry's equipment and service suppliers seem determined to match the pace-if not the volume and dollar value-of their customers' M&A activity, if recent announcements are any indication. In addition to our report on the recently finalized 8.8-billion dollars Caterpillar/ Bucyrus deal (see p. 98), here's a rundown of some other significant supplier-sector transactions: FLSmidth announced in mid-September it had signed an agreement to acquire the assets of Canada-based Knelson, a privately owned company that develops, manufactures, and installs gravity separation equipment for precious metals, base metals and industrial minerals recovery.
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