The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec invests $5.4 million in Groupe Moreau in Abitibi

MONTREAL, Oct. 31, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec announced today a $5.4 million investment in Groupe Moreau, a company based in Rouyn-Noranda, Abitibi. Earlier this year, the Caisse also announced an equity investment made in Groupe Moreau in collaboration with Wynnchruch Capital.

As part of this second transaction, the Caisse is redeeming a portion of the term loan financed by HSBC Bank Canada, which retains its role as primary lender.

"Following an initial investment made earlier in the year, this financing enables us to continue to contribute to the growth of this Québec company that has developed cutting-edge expertise in natural resources," said Normand Provost, Executive Vice-President, Private Equity at the Caisse.

"The collaboration between our different financial partners, HSBC Bank Canada, Wynnchurch and the Caisse facilitates the implementation of an ideal financing structure to allow our company to truly take flight and carry out its business plan," explained Jean-Yves Moreau, Chairman of Groupe Moreau. "With such solid and complementary partners, we can more quickly raise the profile of our expertise throughout Québec, in the rest of Canada and, ultimately, worldwide."

ABOUT GROUPE MOREAU
Founded in 1977, Groupe Moreau has close to 1,000 employees, of which approximately 400 work outside Québec. Groupe Moreau has specialized in many areas and provides services to the mining, commercial and oil sands markets, principally in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Northern Québec, Ontario and Alberta. On the industrial front, it also has vast experience in the sawmill, pulp and paper and energy sectors.  Activities include electrical and instrumentation services, installation of industrial piping, boilers, pumps and pressure valves, civil engineering and structures, insulation and welding. Groupe Moreau has a strong track record in large Northern resource exploration projects, due mainly to its electrical and mechanical expertise in the industrial sector and strong key managers and foremen in all its areas of specialization. Groupe Moreau has acquired a solid reputation for completing high quality projects on time and on budget due to its expertise in managing large projects and workforces in remote areas. It has also acquired a large fleet of equipment to increase its productivity, efficiency and ability to quickly and effectively meet the needs of customers.

ABOUT THE CAISSE DE DÉPÔT ET PLACEMENT DU QUÉBEC
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is a financial institution that manages funds primarily for public and private pension and insurance plans. As at December 31, 2011, it held $159 billion in net assets. As one of Canada's leading institutional fund managers, the Caisse invests in major financial markets, private equity and real estate. For more information: www.lacaisse.com.

SOURCE: CAISSE DE DEPOT ET PLACEMENT DU QUEBEC