07.07.2021

Kiloutou expands in Spain

French international rental group Kiloutou has acquired Spanish general equipment rental company Diaz-Miquelez from owners Juan Diaz and Jorge Miquelez.

Based in Logrono - between Bilbao and Zaragoza in the heart of the La Rioja region - Diaz-Miquelez is operates from four locations in the city, with 35 employees and around 900 items of rental equipment.

The acquisition will boost Kiloutou’s coverage in northern Spain, which is currently limited to the areas around Pamplona and Zaragoza. It also expands Kiloutou Spain’s branch network from 20 to 24 locations, with a combined workforce of 220 employees. In the coming months Diaz Miquelez will be rebranded and merged into Kiloutou Spain.

Established in 1993, Diaz-Miquelez is a leading rental company in Logrono and an IPAF member. Its fleet includes Ahler mastclimbers and hoists, San Marco self-erecting and Jaso top slewing tower cranes, while boom lifts - up to 86ft - are from JLG, Genie and Haulotte, as are the scissor lifts topped by the 53ft Haulotte. The company also operates a number of 3.5 tonne truck mounts from Oil&Steel, and a fleet of fixed frame telehandlers from Dieci and Merlo.

The move follows the acquisition of Seralfe in 2018, CTC de Maquinaria in 2017, Alvecon in 2016, and Rentecnika in 2015.

Kiloutou chief executive Olivier Colleau said: "The acquisition of Diaz-Miquelez demonstrates Kiloutou’s commitment to the Spanish rental market and is fully in line with our development strategy in the country, which aims at increasing our geographical coverage in high potential new areas. It illustrates once again our ability to federate quality regional stakeholders with a strong local presence around our development project. I would like to warmly welcome the 35 team members from Diaz Miquelez into the Kiloutou group."

Diaz Miquelez co-owner and joint managing director Jorge Miquelez added: "I am delighted about the acquisition of our rental equipment and scaffolding group by Kiloutou. Our groups share mutual expertise and common ambition to continuously improve the services we provide to our customers. The handover will enable our teams to contribute to the growth of the Kiloutou group with our strong knowledge of the high potential market of La Rioja. I personally believe in the Kiloutou development project on the Spanish market, and I am pleased to support it by continuing to further develop our commercial presence in the region and by supervising the transformation of our company which will benefit from new investments, services and resources."

Vertikal Comment

This is certainly a good move for Kiloutou in that it dovetails in with its Spanish network perfectly, the product mix also works well and potentially takes it into the mastclimber, hoist and façade scaffold market.

For the owners of Diaz-Miquelez it allows them to cash out on the work done so far, while retaining a role and providing their employees with greater opportunities.