Ardian acquires majority stake in DRT

Francesca Veronesi
30 November 2017

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Ardian has acquired a majority stake in Les Dérivés Résiniques et Terpéniques (DRT) at a valuation of approximately €1bn, while management retains a minority stake.

Individual shareholders and Tikehau Capital decided to reinvest part of their proceeds alongside Ardian. A source close to the deal disclosed that Tikehau, although remaining a minority shareholder, will acquire a substantial stake.

A spokesperson for Tikehau confirmed the firm will have a capital gain estimated at approximately €153m for the sale of its entire stake in DRT.

The management team, headed by CEO Laurent Labatut, fully supports the acquisition.

Financing for the proposed transaction is underwritten by BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole CIB and Societe Generale CIB. A spokesperson for Ardian has confirmed senior covenant-light debt was arranged.

In 2016, DRT acquired Pinova for $140m from Symrise. Over the past three years, the group has invested more than €85m in organic growth projects.

This reorganisation allows DRT to maintain its independence and will help the company to grow organically and expand internationally, according to a company statement.

Previous funding
Tikehau acquired a minority stake in the company in 2014. The firm invested €40m between 2014-2016, via its balance sheet Salvepar.

Company
Created in 1932 and headquartered in Dax, DRT is a producer of ingredients derived from plant-based chemistry, mainly from pine trees. With a turnover estimated at €500m in 2017, 80% of DRT's business is conducted outside of France, of which around 25% in the Americas and more than 10% in Asia. The group employs close to 1,300 people and has four production sites located in France, two in the US, three in India and one in China.

People
Ardian Mid Cap Buyout – Thibault Basquin (managing director); Olivier Personnaz (director); Alexis Manet (senior investment manager); Manon Massoni (investment manager).
Les Dérivés Résiniques et Terpéniques – Laurent Labatut (CEO).
Tikehau Capital – Christian de Labriffe (partner).

Advisers
Equity – Raphaël Financial Advisory, Benoît O'Mahony (M&A); Latham & Watkins, Gaëtan Gianasso, Louis Paumier, Elise Pozzobon, Louise Gurly, Xavier Farde, Carla-Sophie Imperadeiro, Xavier Renard, Yann Auregan (legal); Advancy, Sébastien David, Thomas Dubouchet, Barthélemy Grave, Timothy Chilton (commercial due diligence); Deloitte Finance & Operations, Frédéric Steiner, Jean-Philippe Grosmaitre, Renaud Adam, Tony Gies, Thomas Meleard (financial due diligence); Taj, Olivier Venzal, Eric Couderc (tax); Deloitte, Nicolas de Jenlis (ESG due diligence); Siaci Saint Honoré, Jonhanne Charbit, Nicolas Rivière (insurance due diligence); Ramboll, Michel MacCabe, Gordon Cobb (environmental due diligence).
Company – Rothschild Transaction R, Pierpaolo Carpinelli, Martin Volatier, Augustin Delouvrier, Edouard Lagarrigue de Meillac, Anaïs Pons (M&A); Orrick Rambaud Martel, Saam Golshani, Guillaume Kessler, Julien Bensaid, Anna Leitchenko (legal); Jeausserand Audouard, Jérémie Jeausserand, Alexandre Dejardin, Carole Furst, Eléonore Gaulier (legal).
Vendor – EY Transactions Services, Laurent Chapoulaud, Hugo Primas, Victor de Fromont, Benjamin Piquet (financial due diligence); EY Transaction Tax, Matthieu Autret, Benjamin Pique, Baptiste Gachet (tax); EY Tax, Johan Gaulin (tax).