Alantra acted as financial Alantra advised Sojitz Corporation on the acquisition of solvadis holding S.à.r.l. from funds advised by Orlando Management AG

Feb 2017

Buy-side advisory

Alantra has advised Sojitz Corporation (“Sojitz”), a globally leading general trading group headquartered in Japan, on the acquisition of solvadis holding S.à.r.l. (“solvadis group”), a worldwide active marketer and distributor of chemicals. Alantra’s Frankfurt team provided M&A advice to Sojitz. The transaction is subject to cartel approval.

Alantra introduced this opportunity to Sojitz and advised the client throughout the entire transaction process. Due to Alantra’s close relationship to the seller, in particular profound knowledge of the industry and target, Sojitz was able to maintain a competitive position in the auction process. With this transaction, Alantra once again proved its ability to advise Asian corporates on the acquisition of European targets.

“The successful acquisition of solvadis group by Sojitz demonstrates Alantra’s expertise in the global chemicals sector,” remarked Dr. Bernd Schneider, Global Head of Chemicals in Alantra’s Frankfurt office. “With solvadis group we have found a highly synergistic target for Sojitz sharing similar values.” Sojitz produces and sells methanol in the Asian region, with volumes of more than 1 million tons annually. Through this acquisition, Sojitz will expand its annual trading volume to more than 2 million tons and enlarges the company’s position as a global player within the methanol industry. Following the completion of the transaction, Sojitz aims to create synergies within the basic and specialty chemical sectors, integrating the marketing and distribution strengths of solvadis group in Europe into Sojitz’ global sales network.

solvadis group, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, is a worldwide actice specialist in the marketing and distribution of chemical and pharmaceutical products. Having emerged from the former Metallgesellschaft AG, the group has since developed into a reliable and respected partner of the chemical industry.

Sojitz Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, was formed through the union of Nichimen Corporation and Nissho Iwai Corporation, both companies that boast incredibly long histories. For more than 150 years, their business has helped support the development of countless countries and regions. Today, the Sojitz Group consists of approximately 400 subsidiaries and affiliates located in Japan and throughout the world, generating total sales of more than € 30bn with a market capitalization of more than € 3bn.