According to media reports, Porus was up for grabs on March 30 from a number of PE firms, including Bain, CVC Capital, and Advent International. After agreeing to an exclusivity agreement with the company’s promoters, Bain took the lead in the competition for Porus on May 11. At the time, a potential deal was worth between 2,500 and 3,000 crores ($302 and $363 million), according to the report.
According to a statement from Bain, the transaction’s completion is dependent upon obtaining the required approvals from pertinent authorities.
Partner at Bain Capital Rishi Mandawat stated that the company intended to use Porus’ capabilities to build a platform in the specialty chemicals contract development and manufacturing industry.
“We believe in the industry’s growth prospects and recognize the potential to expand the company’s market presence by developing or acquiring chemical capabilities in key sectors,” he said.
In addition to operating in specialty polymers, electronic chemicals, and agrochemicals, Porus was founded in 1994 by N. Purushothama Rao.
“We are confident in our ability to unlock the full potential of our market-leading position through this transformative partnership with Bain Capital by leveraging their extensive industry expertise and global network,” Srinivasan Namala, chief executive at Porus said, commenting on the transaction.
Porus reported net sales of 806.7 crores in FY22, up 19% from FY21’s net sales of 678.4 crores. Ebitda, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, increased by 97% during the period from 122.9 crore to 241.6 crore.
The international specialty chemical industry is nothing new to Bain. It has already invested in producers of specialized chemicals like Lonza AG and Italmach Chemicals.
In recent years, investors’ interest in the Indian chemical industry has increased.
For more than 7,000 crores, CVC Capital purchased Sajjan India in February 2022. The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board took part in the transaction as well.
Through Cohance Lifesciences, Advent International has been actively building a platform for pharmaceuticals and specialty chemicals. Advent purchased RA Chem, ZCL Chemicals, and Avra Labs as part of this project.
Additionally, US water technology company Xylem Inc. announced in January that it would buy Evoqua Water Technologies Corp. for $7.5 billion. Chemical services for water treatment are offered by Evoqua.
The specialty chemical industry in India is essential for boosting the economy, according to a report from consulting firm KPMG published in November 2022. It currently accounts for 7% of the nation’s GDP and is anticipated to increase significantly to $304 billion by 2025 from $178 billion in 2021.
