Brussels, Belgium – Recticel’s shareholders have voted in favour of selling the company’s engineered foams business to US-based Carpenter. The vote took place at a special general meeting of the company on 6 December.
Recticel's shares opened on 7 December at EUR 16.8, more than EUR 3 higher than the EUR 13.50 per share offered for the whole company by Greiner in its hostile takeover bid. It remains to be seen what Greiner’s next move will be.
In a deal valued at EUR 656m, Carpenter will acquire manufacturing activities in 34 locations in Europe, North Africa, Asia Pacific and the US, with more than 2700 employees. Much of the business comprises the production of customised, semi-finished products in flexible PU foam, for applications such as silencing, sealing, filtering, protecting, and providing support and comfort. It had sales of EUR 562m in 2020.
The sale also includes the former Nordics Bedding activities. This had 2020 sales of EUR 15m.
The confirmatory due diligence has already been finalised, and the transaction is expected to close in mid-2022, subject to antitrust clearances, and employee consultation procedures where these are required.
Recticel said that it will review the options for how to use the proceeds of the sale in due course. This might include a partial distribution to shareholders.
Olivier Chapelle, Recticel’s CEO, welcomed the sale. ‘I was particularly honoured by the huge mobilisation of our shareholders at our special general meeting, as well as by the clear majority of their votes cast in favour of the proposed sale,’ he said. ‘This support comforts me and the board of directors that the proposed divestment was the best option to safeguard the potential of the business and our employees.’
He added that he is confident that Carpenter has the commercial and industrial capabilities to realise the full potential of the business. ‘The complementarity in terms of product range and geographical presence clearly offers a lot of opportunities for end-consumers, retailers and employees,’ he said.
‘The acquisition will, without doubt, significantly strengthen our global position in the European, Asian and US foams market,’ said Carpenter’s CEO, Brad Beauchamp. ‘Recticel’s strong know how in technical foams, its excellent R&D track record and the outspoken complementary product offering will allow our company to become a much more diversified group with an expanded geographical reach.’
