Ardian sells majority stake in Novacap to Eurazeo

Ardian, an independent private French investment company, has signed an agreement with Eurazeo (also a Paris-based investment group) and Mérieux Développement to sell its majority stake in Novacap, a global diversified chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients group based in Lyon (France).

The transaction has an enterprise value of 654 million euros ($746 million), plus up to a 30 million-euro ($34 million) earn-out. Ardian will retain a minority stake, demonstrating its continued confidence in the management team headed by Pierre Luzeau. The transaction, which is expected to close in the summer, is subject to the approval of the relevant regulatory authorities.

Supported by Ardian since March 2011, Novacap has sharply accelerated its growth whilst expanding internationally. The group has made six acquisitions, including two in China and one in Germany, worth a total of 240 million euros. In addition, Novacap has expanded its organic investment program in its production facilities by committing almost 85 million euros over the last three years. These projects were initiated with a view to significantly increasing Novacap’s presence in the target end-markets of pharmaceuticals and healthcare, cosmetics and fragrances, food and animal feed, detergents, and environment.