Saudi investment firm Dussur has agreed to buy a minority stake in Italmatch Chemicals, a growing Italy-based company that supplies esters and chemical additives for a range of lubricants.
The companies did not disclose how much Dussur has agreed to pay, but Bain said in a Dec. 9 news release that the Saudi firm “is expected” to own less than 20% of Italmatch after seeding an additional investment of €100 million to Italmatch. Bain will retain control of the shares not possessed by Dussur.
Officials said they plan to leverage Dussur’s involvement to add customers in Middle Eastern markets.
“Partnering with Dussur will significantly strengthen our existing presence in the Middle East region, which we see as a fast-growing market opportunity in our areas of expertise and end markets, and [will] enable us to expand our offering in a highly strategic high growth market also through a strong local presence,” Italmatch CEO Sergio Iorio said.
Headquartered in Italy, Italmatch was founded in 1997 and has grown rapidly since being bought by Bain Capital Private Equity in 2018. Bain, which is headquartered in Boston, United States, said Italmatch’s earnings before interest, taxes and amortization have swelled from €67 million in 2018 to €160 million this year.
Italmatch has four business units, supplying chemicals for lubricants, water treatment, personal care and consumer products, and oil drilling. The lube additives unit supplies a range of esters – some made from plant-based derivatives, others from petrochemicals – along with phosphorus derivatives, corrosion inhibitors and friction modifiers.
Those additives are used in metalworking fluids, greases and slideway lubricants among other types of lubes.