Qualium in exclusive negotiations over Vulcanic exit

• Qualium has been invested in Vulcanic since 2016
• The offer is $272.8 million on a cash and debt-free basis
• The acquisition would help to grow Spirax-Sarco’s electrical thermal solutions business

French private equity firm Qualium has entered exclusive negotiations with UK-based Spirax-Sarco over the sale of its majority stake in Paris-based industrial electric heating group Vulcanic. The consideration is $272.8 million on a cash and debt-free basis and would be financed through an acquisition bank facility.

Qualium was created in 1998 by Caisse des Dépôts. It looks to invest in French small-medium sized business that are leaders in their sectors with strong growth potential. It is invested in 14 companies and has undertaken more than 30 buy-and-builds since 2010.

“We have been following Vulcanic for some time and believe the acquisition represents an excellent opportunity to broaden our addressable market and further deploy our technologies in Europe,” said Nicholas Anderson CEO Spirax-Sarco. “Vulcanic’s existing strength and scale in Europe – with further investment by our group – will provide a fantastic platform for growth, especially for our recently launched portfolio of TargetZero solutions, which electrify heat generation for industrial processes to support our customers’ decarbonisation objectives.”

Spirax-Sarco is targeting the acquisition in a bid to grow through its existing customers, products and operations which are mostly based in the EMEA region. In 2021, Vulcanic brought in revenue of $93 million and adjusted EBITDA of $16.6 million. It holds gross assets of $229.4 million.