Wormerveer, Netherlands / Düsseldorf, Germany – 11th January 2011 – Eurochem B.V. (“Eurochem”) and Kem A.G. (“Kem”) a joint venture of Stockmeier Holding GmbH and Overlack AG announced today that they have signed an agreement through which Kem will take over from Eurochem all the shares in Quaron France S.A. (“Quaron”). The acquisition by Kem is a first step through which Kem’s shareholders demonstrate their commitment to build a solid distribution network for chemical products in Europe. The transaction is subject to approval of the German competition authority.
The shareholders of Kem have a long lasting and solid history in the chemical industry with strong roots in Germany and eastern europe. For Eurochem this is a logical step after the sale of the Quaron companies in the Benelux to Univar. This transaction had been completed on the 3rd of January 2011.
Quaron is a major chemical distributor with 7,000 customers in France and has an excellent infrastructure including laboratories, blending tanks, bulk and warehouse storage in Rennes, Haubourdin (Lille), Montereau (Paris), Niort and Cestas (Bordeaux). Quaron is a customer service oriented provider for chemical products with a strong focus on blending, formulating and packaging. It is not the intention of Kem to make any changes to the structure or the management of Quaron. Says the General Manager of Quaron, Bruno Lafabregue: “a period of uncertainty with respect to Quaron’s future has now ended. We are happy to become partners of two major strategic players in our industry”.
Kem is a joint venture of Stockmeier Holding GmbH and Overlack AG. Kem has been created for the purpose of this acquisition. For both Stockmeier and Overlack this is a significant step in their joint commitment to the chemical distribution industry. Through this transaction, Kem has gained a strong foothold in the 2nd largest chemical distribution market in Europe.
