Onex to sell KraussMaffei to the Chinese?

News reports indicate that a Chinese group has placed a bid of around US$1 billion to buy German plastics machinery major KraussMaffei Group from Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp. According to the Reuters report, the potential buyer is hoping to seal the deal before Chinese New Year in early February.

Madison Capital Partners bought KraussMaffei, which is world’s largest manufacturer of plastics machinery, in 2006. Onex bought KraussMaffei for US$732 million from Chicago-based Madison in 2012. It warded off rival bids that were said to be from Chinese companies like ChemChina and the world’s largest injection moulding machine maker Haitian as well as Japan-based Sumitomo. Onex also owns US extrusion machinery company Davis-Standard.

The offer is seven times the value of KraussMaffei’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation, with the company having posted EBITDA of EUR140 million last year.

Based in Munich, the group employs approximately 4,000 people worldwide, and has in its stable KraussMaffei Berstorff, and Netstal machinery, as well as KraussMaffei with a portfolio comprising injection moulding machines, extruders, and reaction injection moulding machines.