Brenntag expands Coverage of Specialty Chemicals in Africa

Global chemical distributor Brenntag AG (Essen, Germany) announced  yesterday that the company has entered into an agreement to acquire the DESBRO Group (Nairobi, Kenya). The company also has offices Tanzania, Uganda and the UAE.

The group offers a broad portfolio of commodities and specialty chemicals to diverse strategic customer industries such as Plastics, Coatings & Construction, Textile, Water Treatment and increasingly Life Sciences, Brenntag said in  statement. The geography covered includes East & Central Africa (incl. Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia) and the Middle East. Established in 1954, DESBRO markets products from approx. 50 international suppliers and serves more than 1’000 customers.

The acquired business posted sales of EUR 70 mn in FY2017,  generating a gross profit of EUR 8.8 mn and a normalized EBITDA of EUR 4.7 million. Brenntag’s investment amounts to EUR 30.2 mn.  Closing of the transaction is expected for Q1-2019, subject to certain contractual closing conditions and customary regulatory approvals.

Source: Brenntag press release, DESPRO website

HGE – DCG / 14.09.2018