Weinberg Capital-backed Climater acquires Aditec

Alice Tchernookova
22 June 2016

Tweet
Facebook
LinkedIn
Google plus
Send to

French industrial group Climater, backed by Weinberg Capital since 2011, is set to acquire air-conditioning group Aditec as part of a dividend recapitalisation.

Climater will receive a new senior debt package provided jointly by Crédit Agricole, LCL, CIC and BNP Paribas.

The dividend recapitalisation mainly enables the company to acquire competitor Aditec – specialised in the installation, repair and maintenance of air conditioning, heating and cooling systems – in a build-up transaction.

The deal marks the third bolt-on acquisition in the last three years for Climater, after Bordeaux-based CMFT Heating in 2013 and installation and maintenance service Aurion & Cie in 2015. This latest acquisition should mostly enable Climater to extend its offer to new, previously uncovered regions.

Previous funding
In February 2010, Siparex Private Equity and regional fund Rhône-Alpes PME Gestion invested €1.2m in Aditec. The investment was structured as an OBO deal with moderate leverage. Siparex invested through its Siparex Proximite 3 fund and a newco, Devadi. Founder Alain Robert retained a majority stake in the company.

In October 2011, Weinberg took a majority stake in French climate engineering group Climater from Industries & Finances (I&F), which reaped a 3.5x multiple on its original investment and reinvested to hold around 5% of Climater. Weinberg, which invested from the €418m WCP1 vehicle, was joined by 70 members of Climater's management as well as Grand Sud-Ouest Capital and Nord-Midi Pyrénées Développement – Crédit Agricole's regional growth capital arms.

Company
Established in 2007, Climater is an engineering group specialising in climate-related services. It carries out plumbing, insulation and ventilation works for clients such as healthcare and industrial companies, distributors and public authorities. Headquartered in Toulouse, the business employed 600 people across 17 offices in several French regions in 2015. Its turnover was estimated at around €100m in 2013.

Aditec specialises in the installation, repair and maintenance of air conditioning, heating and cooling systems, as well as energy management. The company, based in Albens in the Savoie region, has estimated revenues of around €8m.

People
Weinberg Capital Partners – Jérôme Louvet (partner); Benjamin Rousseau-Calisti (director).

Advisers
Equity – Advolis, Damien Bourg, Xavier Nicolas (financial due diligence); Gide, Amme Tolila, Matthias Grolier (legal).
Vendor – DC Advisory, Nicolas Durieux (M&A).