Global plastics and chemicals maker Covestro is selling its European polycarbonate sheet business to Serafin Group.
No sale price was included in a Sept. 16 news release announcing the deal. The business posted sales of around 130 million euros (US$143.2 million) in 2018.
The transaction includes plants in Belgium and Italy, as well as central management operations and sales support in Europe. The business makes sheet used in industrial protection, construction systems and signage.
Covestro officials in Leverkusen, Germany, said the decision to sell was made as part of Covestro's ongoing portfolio optimization process, which includes the divestment of all PC sheet businesses.
"The sale of the European outlets thus concludes the previous divestments of the respective facilities in North America and India in 2018, and the conversion of its production in Guangzhou, China, into a specialty films site," they said in a news release. "After a thorough evaluation, Covestro has decided that the sheets business no longer fits in the strategy of its polycarbonates segment in the long run."
Munich-based Serafin is focused on investments in established, small and mid-sized companies in industrial business sectors. Officials said in the release that, based on the strong market position of the PC sheet business, Serafin "aims to strengthen the business as a mid-sized company with high flexibility and a strong customer orientation."
Serafin also owns German plastic film supplier Perga-Plastic GmbH. The business employs 5,000 at businesses with total annual sales of around 800 million euros (US$881 million).
All 250 employees of the PC sheet unit will be retained. Covestro will continue to serve as the key raw materials supplier for the business for the foreseeable future.
Covestro employs almost 17,000 and posted sales of 14.6 billion euros (US$16.1 billion) in 2018.