Rexel, worldwide expert in the multichannel professional distribution of products and services for the energy world, announces today the sale of its operations in South East Asia to A merican I ndustrial Acquisition Corporation Group (AIA C ) , a private equity firm f ocus ing on investment in the industrial sector.
The transaction includes the following seven South – East Asian countries in which Rexel wa s present: Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, Macau, and Malaysia.
This decision is fully in line with Rexel’s midterm strategic plan presented on February 13, 2017, in which the Group made a priority of actively managing its portfolio to focus on the most attractive geographies and businesses. The divestment of all of it s operations in South East Asia will allow Rexel to refocus its managerial efforts on its main geographies and to improve Group profitability.
As a reminder, based on full – year 201 6 consolidated accounts, the disposal plan announced on February 1 3 , 201 7 , once fully completed, should have the following financial impacts:
• A reduction of c. 800 million euros of sales ,
• A positive contribution of c. 2 5 bps to the Group’s consolidated adjusted EBITA margin,
• A slight improvement in the leverage ratio .
Combined , the contribution to Rexel’s 2016 consolidated sales of the seven South East Asian countries amounted to 136 million euros (and 1 08 million euros estimated for FY 2017, down 2 1 % year – on – year on a constant and actual – day basis). Their contribution to Rexel’s 2016 adjusted consolidated EBITA was a gain of c. 1 million euros (and an estimated loss of 3 million euros for 2017). Lastly , the impact on the leverage ratio is limited.
The divestment of South East Asia , including the operations announced in Q2’ 20 17, represents about 17 % of the entire disposal plan presented in February 2017, which should be completed by the end of 201 8 .
This transaction should result in an estimated pre – tax loss of about 60 million euros.
AIAC is a privately held industrial investment company with a long – term mission to build enduring businesses. Established in 1996, it holds a portfolio of over 50 manufacturing and distribution locations with over 15,000 employees in 19 countries in North America, Europe, and Asia and total annual revenues of over USD 2 billion.