Novum Capital to sell CC Group to trade

Harriet Matthews
22 February 2021

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Novum Capital is to sell Germany-based incineration waste disposal business CC Group to trade, ending a holding period of more than three years.

A competition authority filing dated 16 February 2021 stated that Waterland Private Equity is to acquire a controlling stake in CC Group via its fifth fund.

Two sources close to the situation confirmed to Unquote that the buyer is waste management business Blue Phoenix, a portfolio company of Waterland since 2015.

The deal values CC Group in the €100-150m range, the first source confirmed to Unquote.

Unquote sister publication Mergermarket reported in June 2020 that the sale process for CC Group had begun. The company was to be marketed based on EBITDA of €10m and revenues of €80m.

Novum announced the acquisition of CC Group in December 2017, investing alongside the company's management. According to Unquote Data, the GP made the all-equity deal via its debut fund, which held a final close in February 2017 on €75m. The GP and management acquired the business from six private foundations, according to its website.

In June 2019, CC Group completed a refinancing of €51m arranged by Kartesia. The package comprised term loans and a capex facility, as well as super-senior working capital lines, which were provided by Deutsche Bank. The term loan facilitated a recapitalisation for the GP.

As well as restructuring the company's debt during the investment period, Novum also sold CC Group's loss-making operations, such as its scrap metal division, which generated revenues in the €40-50m region. The GP shifted the company's focus towards its core operations in the areas of slag removal, filter dust and mineral processing. These three core operations generated revenues of less than €60m in 2017, compared with €73m in 2020, the first source told Unquote. The GP also invested approximately €12m in the development of the company's operations sites.

The sale of CC Group is Novum's second exit of 2021 and also its second exit to a sponsor-backed buyer; the GP sold marzipan and nougat producer Schluckwerder to CapVest's Valeo Foods in January 2021.

In June 2015, Waterland acquired UK-headquartered waste management company Ballast Phoenix from H2 Equity Partners, which had paid €38m for the business in 2014.

Waterland invested via Waterland Private Equity Fund V, which held a final close in July 2011 on €1.1bn. The deal was also backed by a debt package comprising £25m from Lloyds Bank and £17.5m from Alberta Investment Management.

Also in June 2015, Ballast Phoenix acquired Dutch market peer Inashco, strengthening its presence in the Netherlands. The company subsequently changed its name to Blue Phoenix.

Company
Founded in 1969, CC Group is a waste management company that provides services for the disposal of slag and filter dust arising from incineration, as well as minerals and metals that are produced by this process. It reported revenues of €73m in 2020, compared with €110m in 2017. The company is headquartered in Krefeld and employs 130 staff.

People
CC Group – Dieter Kersting (CEO); Roberto Grau (chief operating officer); Robert Murmann (CFO).
Blue Phoenix – Paul Knight (CEO).
Novum Capital – Felix Homann (managing partner).
Waterland Private Equity – Rob Thielen (chairman of the supervisory board).