June 17, 2013
A multidisciplinary, cross-border Willkie team represented specialty chemicals company Rockwood Holdings, Inc. in its deal to sell CeramTec, its advanced ceramics business, to European private equity firm Cinven.
As reported widely in the press, Willkie client Rockwood Holdings, Inc. announced on June 16 that it entered into a definitive agreement to sell CeramTec, its advanced ceramics business, to Cinven, a European private equity firm, for €1.49 billion (approx. $1.98 billion). The transaction is expected to close during the third quarter of 2013 upon certain regulatory approvals, including EU competition clearance.
CeramTec, based in Plochingen, Germany, is a leading global producer of high performance advanced ceramics products. With approximately 3,000 employees and 18 facilities globally, it serves four principal end-markets: medical, electronics, industrial and automotive. Rockwood is a leading global specialty chemicals and advanced materials company with approximately 10,300 employees and annual net sales of approximately $3.5 billion in 2012.
Earlier this year Willkie advised Rockwood in its acquisition of a stake in Sachtleben, a titanium dioxide business joint venture.
The current deal was handled by a multidisciplinary, cross-border Willkie team, led by corporate partner Georg Linde in Frankfurt, and included: Frankfurt - partners Mario Schmidt (Corporate) and Dr. Patrick Meiisel (Tax), national partners Dr. Bettina Bokeloh (Tax), Jan Wilms (Finance), Rolf Huenermann (Regulatory) and Dr. Christian Rolf (Employment), and associates Dr. Axel Wahl, Christina Mann, Dr. Maximilian Schwab, Patrick Wacker and Daniel Zakrzewski (all Corporate), Jochen Riechwald, Christian Stoehr (both Employment), Tobias Daubert, Mario Bammann (both Finance) and Joerg Walzer (Tax); New York – partners William Gump (Corporate), Richard Mancino (Litigation), William Hiller (Banking) and Ian Levin (Employment), and associates Angela Redai, Margaret Hanson, Joseph Antignani and Shaimaa Hussein (all Corporate) and Toby Lewis (Employment); and Paris – partner Dominique Mondoloni and associate Charlotte Lance (both Corporate).
