Continental AG announced in early February that it is expanding its global industrial business by acquiring Veyance Technologies from The Carlyle Group, a corporate private equity investment firm, for approximately €1.4 billion. Veyance is a supplier of conveyor belts and other products to the mining industry and other sectors; in 2013, the Ohio, USA-based company recorded sales of approximately €1.5 billion. Veyance has 27 plants, and at the end of 2013 employed a workforce of about 9,000. The acquisition is subject to the approval of the responsible anti-trust authorities.
“Veyance’s business and geographic presence complements Continental’s existing global footprint, and the planned integration of Veyance into our ContiTech division will expand our position in rubber and plastics technologies on a worldwide basis. Furthermore, this acquisition will enable Continental to come a step closer to its strategic goal of increasing further our proportion of sales to industrial customers and private end users. ContiTech itself will achieve some 60% of its sales outside the automotive OE sector in the future,” said Dr. Elmar Degenhart, chairman of Continental’s executive board in Hanover. “Veyance will make an immediate positive contribution to the corporation’s profitability once the transaction has been concluded. The acquisition can be financed from cash and available credit lines.”
“Veyance Technologies will complement our ContiTech division in key markets where our presence is limited, particularly in the U.S. and South America. Plants in Mexico, Canada, China, Australia and also South Africa will provide additional opportunities,” said Heinz-Gerhard Wente, member of the executive board of Continental AG and CEO of the ContiTech division.
“Veyance and ContiTech complement each other geographically, and ContiTech’s Conveyor Belt Group and Fluid Technology business units in particular will benefit from an enhanced global presence. The Power Transmission Group and Air Spring Systems also will achieve positive results from the merger,” Wente said.
