MAXAM, a global technology company specialised in the design, development, manufacture and application of energetic materials, announces that shareholder Advent International has agreed to sell its 45% stake in the company to investment funds affiliated with Rhône Capital.
MAXAM’s shareholder group, led by Chairman and CEO José F Sánchez-Junco, will continue to hold the remaining 55% of the company’s stock. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed and is subject to customary regulatory approvals.
Private equity firm Advent acquired its stake in MAXAM in February 2012 and has “actively contributed to the strategy crafted by the MAXAM management team”, MAXAM said. This enabled the company to fulfil its domestic and international growth ambitions by expanding and strengthening its footprint in key markets, through organic growth.
MAXAM’s origins date back to 1872, when Alfred Nobel founded Sociedad Española de Dinamita Privilegios A. Nobel in Bilbao. Over recent years, it has evolved from a Spanish manufacturer of explosives towards a technology company specialising in energetic materials.
Today, the company has over 6,500 employees, subsidiaries in more than 50 countries and generates sales in over 100 countries.
It structures its activity into four business units: blasting solutions for mining, quarries and civil works; cartridges and gun powders for use in hunting and recreational shooting; products and systems for the defence and security sector; and key raw materials for the nitro chemical industry.
For its fiscal year to March 31, MAXAM generated more than €1.1 billion ($1.28 billion) of revenue.
Rhône and its affiliates, meanwhile, comprise a global alternative investment management firm with more than $5 billion in assets under management. The firm focuses its private equity investments in market-leading businesses with a pan-European or transatlantic presence and global growth opportunities.
It is currently investing capital from its fifth private equity fund and has put money into a diversified portfolio of companies including those in the chemical, consumer product, food, packaging, industrials, specialty material, business services, and transportation sectors.
