United Kingdom-based specialty nonwovens manufacturer Fiberweb plc and its subsidiary, Fiberweb
Holdings Ltd., have agreed to sell the company’s hygiene business to Brazil-based industrial
conglomerate Petropar S.A. for $286 million. The transaction is expected to close by the end of
2011.
Fiberweb and Petropar are 50/50 joint venture (JV) partners in FitesaFiberweb, a producer of
spunmelt fabrics primarily for hygiene applications. The JV has operations in Brazil, Mexico and
the United States. Petropar is assuming 100 percent of the JV’s debt, which brings the enterprise
value of the deal up to $358 million.
According to Fiberweb, the transaction will allow the company to focus on technical fabrics
and construction products markets, particularly on filtration, construction specialty,
geosynthetics, agriculture and certain medical applications. It also expects to repay its existing
net debt and further develop its remaining industrial business.
“The sale of Fiberweb’s hygiene business to Petropar marks the end of the fundamental
transformation of Fiberweb that we have been driving since 2006. The Group will now be focused on
industrial specialties with superior returns and prospects and will enjoy a much strengthened
balance sheet,” said Malcolm Coster, chairman, Fiberweb plc. “Fiberweb’s hygiene business will join
a successful team focused on that industry, with whom we have enjoyed a fruitful and profitable
relationship in recent years.”
November 22, 2011
