Exclusive: Trivest adds Niagara unit to conservation platform

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  • Trivest buys Energy & Water Conservation division of Niagara
  • Florida private equity firm combining new unit with AM Conservation Group platform
  • Deal creates leader in estimated $100 mln market niche

The deal for the Energy & Water Conservation Products business of Fort Worth, Texas-based Niagara was privately negotiated and took place without an auction. Terms were  not disclosed.

“By combining the two businesses, we increased the size of the overall entity by over 50 percent and it creates a market leader in the energy conservation product market,” Todd Jerles, principal at Florida-based Trivest, told Buyouts.  

Niagara Conservation Corp’s core business remains water-saving toilets, while its Energy & Water Conservation division will use the Niagara name under the AM Conservation Group platform. 

Trivest’s marriage of the two companies focuses the mostly business-to-business market of supplying energy and water-saving products to utility companies for government-mandated conservation programs. The Niagara unit focuses mostly on water conservation products such as shower heads, complementing AM Conservation, which sells more electricity-saving devices such as CFC and LED bulbs.

The deal caps off a busy year for Trivest with a total of nine new acquisitions and one exit for the firm. Its latest fund, Trivest Fund V, closed late last year with $415 million in commitments, ahead of its $325 million target.