Evonik Industries AG has carved out its methyl methacrylates (MMA) and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) business with the 3 billion euros (US$3.3 billion) sale of the unit to US private equity firm Advent International.
Named after Otto Röhm, Evonik's founding member and the founder methacrylate chemistry, Röhm GmbH will represent “quality and a pioneering spirit,” said the newly appointed chief executive Michael Pack in a Aug 1 statement.
Now owned by Advent International, Röhm GmbH has average annual sales of 1.9 billion euros (US$2.1 billion) and EBITDA of about 350 million euros (US$386 million).
The company employs 3,900 people across 15 production sites in Germany (Worms, Darmstadt, Weiterstadt, Wesseling, Hanau), China, the U.S., Russia, and South Africa.
“It is our goal to keep driving the growth of our business and to further strengthen leading market positions through investments and targeted expansion,” said the CEO Pack.
Advent has also revealed plans to further invest in technologies and Röhm production sites.
“We see great potential to establish Röhm as a global market and technology leader in methacrylate chemicals,” said Ronald Ayles, managing partner and global head of chemicals at Advent International. “In partnership with the management and employees, we will continue to develop Röhm through investments and expansion.”
Röhm has a comprehensive product portfolio of products for a wide range of applications in the automotive, electronics, and construction industries.
The company’s Plexiglas-branded PMMAs are used in cars, airplane windows, screens & displays or as building glazing.
In addition to being used as PMMA precursors, Röhm’s MMAs are also used in the production of varnishes & paints, floor coatings, adhesives, and other materials.
Evonik started the process to carve out its methacrylates business in July last year.
In spite of its sales of roughly 1.9 billion euros (US$2.1 billion), Evonik defined the business as “outside the company's growth area.”
In an interview with PNE last October, Ralf Duessel, general manager high-performance polymers, said the decision was made due to the business’s cyclical nature, its cash-intensiveness as well as the fact that MMAs are standard chemicals, as opposed to specialty chemicals.