Private equity fund Abac Sustainable Value II FCR “Abac” has completed the acquisition of Intermas Group. Abac, a fund specialised in sustainable value investments in the mid-market segment, plans to boost growth in Intermas’s industrial business by promoting the company’s innovative material technology and sustainable product lifecycles. In parallel, Catral Garden & Home Depot, SA “Catral”, a gardening company owned by J.P. Morgan and Blackpearl, is acquiring the group’s gardening and DIY division.
The deal, with an enterprise value of €110 million, has been carried out for €60 million cash.
Intermas, which is headquartered in Llinars del Vallès (Barcelona, Spain), was started by the founding family over six decades ago and currently generates annual revenues of approximately €190 million.
The industrial business acquired by Abac has sales totalling €108 million. The industrial division manufactures and sells high-performance technical materials for a broad spectrum of end products. For example, the materials made by Intermas are used in industrial applications for wind turbine blades and air and water filters, in geotechnical applications such as drain membranes and erosion control netting, and in agricultural applications such as protective tree and crop netting. The group operates five factories in Spain, France and Italy and has commercial offices in the US. It sells its products in more than 85 countries, with around 80% of its sales generated outside of Spain.
Abac, the only Spanish mid-market asset manager with the B Corp sustainability certification, plans to provide Intermas’s industrial business with the resources needed at the strategic, operational, and financial levels to accelerate its expansion and foster more sustainable solutions. Abac will build on the company’s existing talent and development capabilities, which have earned Intermas a leadership position in a broad spectrum of material technologies.
Borja Martínez de la Rosa, one of Abac Capital’s founding partners, commented on the transaction: “Intermas’s industrial business is well-diversified geographically and sector-wise and operates in markets that are relatively uncorrelated with limited dependence on discretionary spending. Intermas’s products are highly valued by its customers thanks to their high quality and extensive range. The company’s productive and commercial flexibility and excellent service standards are top-rated attributes. Our ambition is to unlock new opportunities for the company, including expanding in certain markets where it has a smaller footprint and making sustainability a tool for value creation. We also do not rule out the possibility of add-on acquisitions to accelerate sector consolidation”.
Abac Capital was advised on the transaction by KPMG (Due Diligence), EY (legal), and Attalea Partners (ESG). Catral’s legal counsel was Garrigues. Intermas Group was advised by DC Advisory (M&A), PwC (due diligence), Broseta (legal), and Roland Berger (Sales Due Diligence).
Broseta advised Intermas Group with a Barcelona office team led by partner Carlos Salinas, senior associate Manel Puig and associate Lina Nassar.
Garrigues team advising Catral was led by counsel Alejandro Sánchez Sánchez, partner Miguel Ángel Castejon de La Encina and principal associate Leonardo Adamo.
EY Abogados team advising Abac was formed by partners Simeon García-Nieto Nubiola and Gonzalo Martín De Nicolás, senior manager José María Pujals, manager Elena Galán and associate Alejandra Pascual.