MUTTENZ, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 28, 2006--Clariant (SWX:CLN - News) today announced the sale of its Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals unit to TowerBrook Capital Partners, L.P. for a transaction value of approximately CHF 110 million. The sale marks a further step in Clariant’s strategy to focus its portfolio on core activities.
The unit manufactures building blocks, regulatory starting materials, intermediates and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for both the innovative and the generic pharmaceutical industry. At the deal’s completion, the new autonomous entity will be one of the world’s largest businesses based solely on pharmaceutical fine chemicals, with 2005 sales of around CHF 210 million and about 800 employees. It will operate all manufacturing sites of Clariant Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals and will be headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
The new entity has strong opportunities for profitable growth as a result of the restructuring efforts and the successful implementation of its new strategy in the pharmaceutical business. As previously announced, new contracts with major customers were signed in recent months. For example, Clariant Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals was selected by Roche as a supplier for key materials in the manufacturing supply chain of Tamiflu®.
The agreed selling price of CHF 110 million includes an earn-out participation of CHF 40 million. This earn-out participation, to be paid in two years’ time, reflects the strong prospects of the unit. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter after fulfillment of local transfer requirements such as approval of the competition authorities, resulting in net cash proceeds of approximately CHF 40 million and a book loss of approximately CHF 80 million. All assets and personnel will be transferred and the business will be managed on a stand-alone basis.
Jan Secher, Clariant’s Chief Executive, said: “The Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals business sharpened its strategy and improved its efficiency, enabling it to become one of the industry’s leading suppliers. As an independent entity supported by a committed investor, it has an excellent opportunity to perform well in the future. On the Clariant side, this is another important step in focusing our business portfolio on innovative applications with value-increasing service components.”
James Harrison, Managing Director of TowerBrook, said: “As a supplier to the pharmaceutical industry, the Pharmaceutical Fine Chemicals business is in an excellent position to benefit from the increasing trend towards outsourcing to specialist providers. Together with management, we plan to grow the business through new capital investment and through appropriate acquisitions.”
About TowerBrook
TowerBrook Capital Partners, L.P. is a private equity firm with more than $2.5 billion under management. The firm has offices in London and New York and focuses on making investments in European and North American companies. TowerBrook pursues control-oriented private equity investments in large and middle market companies, partnering with highly capable management teams and seeking situations characterized by complexity. TowerBrook invests primarily in leveraged buy-outs, leveraged build-ups and distressed situations. www.towerbrook.com
Clariant - Exactly your chemistry.
Clariant is a global leader in the field of specialty chemicals. Strong business relationships, commitment to outstanding service and wide-ranging application know-how make Clariant a preferred partner for its customers.
Clariant, which is represented on five continents with over 100 group companies, employs about 23 000 people. Headquartered in Muttenz near Basel, it generated sales of around CHF 8.2 billion in 2005.
Clariant’s businesses are organized in five divisions: Textile, Leather & Paper Chemicals, Pigments & Additives, Functional Chemicals, Life Science Chemicals and Masterbatches.
Clariant is committed to sustainable growth springing from its own innovative strength. Clariant’s innovative products play a key role in its customers’ manufacturing and treatment processes or else add value to their end products. The company’s success is based on the know-how of its people and their ability to identify new customer needs at an early stage and to work together with customers to develop innovative, efficient solutions.
www.clariant.com
Contact: Clariant International Ltd Investor Relations: Fax: +41 61 469 67 67 or Holger Schimanke, +41 61 469 67 45 or Fabian Hildbrand, +41 61 469 67 49 or Phone: +41 61 469 67 48 or Media Relations: Fax: +41 61 469 69 99 or Walter Vaterlaus, +41 61 469 61 58 or Rainer Weihofen, +41 61 469 67 42 or TowerBrook Brunswick Group LLP Gill Ackers or Conor McClafferty, +44 20 7404 5959
Source: Clariant International Ltd
