Essroc/Italcementi, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ciments Français, announced an agreement to purchase Winchester, Va.-based Riverton Investment Corp., which trades as Capitol Materials Corp. The deal boosts Essroc's coverage in the Mid-Atlantic of the United States.

The agreement includes a cement plant in Martinsburg, W.Va.; an aggregates quarry in Blair, W.Va.; and lime, masonry, and aggregates properties in Front Royal, Va. With an annual output of about 750,000 mt, the Riverton plant will raise Essroc's production capacity to about 7.5 million mtpy and will open up markets in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.