Imerys agrees to buy AMCOL International in $1.6 bln deal

PARIS, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Imerys has agreed to buy minerals and materials group AMCOL International Corp for about $1.6 billion including debt, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

The acquisition, priced at $41 per AMCOL share, is expected to generate "significant commercial and operational synergies" and is expected to boost earnings per share from the first full year of integration, in 2015, Imerys said.