Private equity trio keen on Klöckner unit

Klöckner Pentaplast, the plastic film manufacturer that is part of Klöckner Group, is on the radar screens of buyout firms Cinven, BC Partners and Bain & Co.

According to reports, the trio are currently undertaking due diligence on the business, which may sell for as much as E1bn. Pentaplast produces plastic films for pharmaceutical packaging, food packaging and credit cards.

Klöckner earlier this year sold its steel interest to German buyout firm WCM. It has also sold off its packaging technology business, Pentapack.

Pentaplast is the latest division of a German industrial concern to have attracted interest from financial buyers in recent weeks. Also subject to private equity interest are Henkel’s speciality chemicals business Cognis, which Schroder Ventures and Goldman Sachs Equity Partners have agreed to buy, and Siemens’ plastic machinery business, MPM, which Apax Partners came close to buying.

Both the Henkel and Siemens deals have highlighted how difficult it can be to close transactions in the current market environment. As market prospects deteriorate, there is speculation that Schroders and Goldmans may not proceed with the Henkel deal on the terms that were originally agreed, whilst Apax was last week understood to have scrapped the MPM deal altogether as the company’s outlook worsened.