M&As: Private equity firm to buy stake in Nextchem for EUR110 mn; Constantia Flexibles completes acquisition of majority shares in Aluflexpack

Italy’s Maire says that Maire Investments has signed  an agreement with Azzurra Capital for the acquisition of a stake of approximately 8% in the share capital of its subsidiary Nextchem, which is heading the Sustainable Technology Solutions business unit.

The total consideration for the stake is EUR110 million, corresponding to an equity value of Nextchem of EUR1.4 billion. 

Azzurra Capital is an international private equity investment group focused on companies that are leaders in their business and capable to deliver sustainable growth and superior value.

As a result of the above investment, Maire will hold approximately 82% of Nextchem’s share capital (unchanged, following Maire Board of Directors’ resolution to waive the pre-emption right, having received a favourable non-binding opinion of the Related Party Committee), Azzurra Capital approximately 8%, Yousef Al Nowais 5% and MI approximately 5%. The agreed terms of the transaction, whose closing is expected to take place within May 2025, are substantially in line with those of the Al Nowais. 

Alessandro Bernini CEO of Maire, commented: "This agreement is another important step in Nextchem’s value enhancement journey. The company has drawn significant interest from leading international partners and achieved high market valuations. The investment of a partner with a strong track record such as Azzurra Capital is a further confirmation of the effectiveness of Nextchem’s strategy and positioning as a major technology player in the energy transition.” 

Meanwhile in other news, Austrian packaging firm Constantia Flexibles, a portfolio company owned by an affiliate of One Rock Capital Partners, has announced that it has successfully completed the acquisition of a majority of shares of Aluflexpack AG, a European producer of custom flexible packaging, serving food and pharmaceutical sectors.

Constantia has acquired approximately 57% of the shares of Aluflexpack from Montana Tech Components AG and Xoris GmbH, and in parallel settled a successful tender offer for the remaining publicly held registered shares. As announced in the offer prospectus, Constantia initiated the squeeze-out procedure and had Aluflexpack apply for the delisting of the Aluflexpack shares, such delisting to be effective as of the date of the court decision regarding the squeeze-out.

Headquartered in Reinach (Aargau), Switzerland, Aluflexpack employs approximately 1,700 employees in nine countries and has production facilities in Switzerland, France, Poland, Türkiye, Croatia, US and Tunisia.

"We are delighted to welcome Aluflexpack to the Constantia Flexibles Group," said David Spratt, CEO of Constantia Flexibles. "We believe the combination with Aluflexpack will strengthen our leadership in product innovation and sustainability, and will improve our ability to serve customers with a broader range of packaging solutions. We look forward to joining forces with the Aluflexpack team to complete the integration of the businesses and embark upon our joint growth trajectory.”

Johannes Steurer, CEO of Aluflexpack stated, "The acquisition by Constantia Flexibles marks an exciting new chapter for Aluflexpack. Over the last decade, we have transformed Aluflexpack into one of Europe’s leading flexible packaging companies. With Constantia Flexibles, we now have a partner that shares our commitment to sustainability and innovation and our team is excited about the potential growth opportunities that lie ahead for both companies together.”

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