USA : Xerium to buy roll covers operation in China
Write:
Brie [2011-05-20]
Xerium Technologies Inc announced the acquisition of a privately held roll covers business in China. Xerium acquired from IB Investments Limited all of the equity of a Mauritius holding company that owns 90% of a joint venture roll covering operation located in Xian, China that operates under the Xibe brand name and a wholly owned foreign-funded enterprise with a roll covers facility in Changzhou, China.
The total consideration for the acquisition was approximately $12 million and is subject to certain adjustments. The acquired companies had aggregate net sales for the first nine months of 2007 of approximately $3.6 million.
Thomas Gutierrez, Xerium's President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "China is one of the fastest growing paper and board manufacturing markets in the world. We expect the Chinese paper industry to continue to invest in some of the most technically-advanced paper making equipment in the world and thus, increase demand for our advanced roll covers technology and value-added services.
With this transaction, we are able to accelerate our entry into this growing market. We believe that Xerium can leverage its market leadership under the Stowe Woodward brand name, taking full advantage of the recently-built Changzhou facility and Xibe's reputation for providing the local Chinese market with quality services and roll products, to significantly build market share in the Chinese paper and board market."