Portugal's cork-to-oil mogul Amorim dies at 82

[July 14, 2017]  LISBON (Reuters) - Americo Amorim, Portugal's richest man with business interests ranging from energy and finance to the world's largest cork producer, Corticeira Amorim, died on Thursday aged 82, a company spokesman said.

He could not say what was the cause of death.

According to Forbes, Amorim's net worth was $4.8 billion and his biggest single asset an indirect 18 percent stake in Portuguese oil company Galp Energia <GALP.LS>.

Amorim controlled holding company Amorim Energia, which in its turn is the largest shareholder in Galp with a 33.3 percent stake. His minority partners in Amorim Energia were Angola's state oil company Sonangol and the daughter of Angolan President Eduardo dos Santos, Isabel.

Last October, Amorim resigned from the post of chairman of the board of directors of Galp for personal reasons and was replaced by his daughter, Paula Amorim.

Amorim was an heir to the cork business set up by his grandfather in 1870, expanded it and became a major diversified investor. He remained chairman of the board of the Grupo Amorim holding company, which owns Corticeira Amorim, among other interests.

His nephew Antonio Rios de Amorim took over as chief executive at Corticeira in 2001. The company is the global leader in wine bottle stoppers and other cork products, accounting for more than a third of the global stopper market.

(Reporting by Andrei Khalip; Editing by Mark Potter)

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