Arias, Fábrega & Fábrega acted as counsel to worldwide industrial services company Harsco Corporation (NYSE: HSC), in connection with its acquisition of ESCO Interamerica, Ltd., one of Latin America's premier engineering and equipment services providers to the infrastructure sector and the number one market leader in Central America and the Caribbean.

As local counsel, the firm advised Harsco on all aspects of Panamanian law with regards to the acquisition, including a parallel structuring and execution of the Panama portion of the transaction to comply with foreign investment qualification, as well as other competing cross-border regulatory, tax and legal issues between the various jurisdictions.

ESCO will become a key part of the Harsco Infrastructure group’s Americas region operations, immediately expanding the group's existing Latin America presence in Mexico, Chile and Peru with seven additional countries, including Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, and Puerto Rico, while increasing Harsco Infrastructure's overall global footprint to more than 40 countries. The acquisition also gives Harsco Infrastructure a well-established platform for additional expansion throughout the Latin America market, particularly Brazil, where multi-billion dollar investments in public infrastructure, energy and tourism-related construction are anticipated. ESCO combines more than 50 years of scaffolding and formwork experience in the construction services industry with a strong leadership team. The company employs approximately 450 people and recorded 2008 sales of approximately US$50 million.

Harsco Corporation is one of the world's leading diversified industrial services companies, serving key industries that play a fundamental role in worldwide economic growth, including infrastructure, metals, railways and energy.