Luxemburg/London, December 12, 2021 – AURELIUS announces the acquisition of Minova in a global carve-out transaction from Orica Ltd, Melbourne, Australia (“Orica” ISIN: AU000000ORI1). The transaction with an enterprise value of AUD 180 million (approx. EUR 114 million) will be completed by AURELIUS’ newly launched co-investment structure with AURELIUS European Opportunities Fund IV controlling a 70% stake and AURELIUS Equity Opportunities SE & Co. KGaA (ISIN: DE000A0JK2A8) controlling 30%. The transaction is expected to close in Q1 2022, subject to approval by the relevant competition and regulatory authorities.

Headquartered in London, Minova is a global manufacturer and provider of earth-control products to mining and infrastructure customers supplying steel (bolts, mesh etc.) as well as chemical products (resins) and among the Top-3 in all relevant markets. With 13 production sites and 18 sales offices across North America, Europe & the CIS, South Africa, India and Australia and more than 1,000 employees, Minova generated revenues of ca. EUR 300 million in the last financial year.

Minova’s markets have been changing over the past years, with the drive for electrification substantially raising demand for precious metals (hard-rock mining), forecasted to quadruple by 2040, while thermal coal (“soft rock”) is in structural decline. With its globally leading resin know-how, Minova is ideally placed to benefit from the related requirement for deeper and more complex hard rock mines. AURELIUS will actively support Minova’s ongoing transition from soft rock to hard rock in the coming years.

“I am pleased to welcome Minova as the fourth fund investment in our portfolio, a really exciting opportunity for AURELIUS to expand a global market leader in an attractive niche. The transaction proves again that our experience in corporate spin-offs is highly appreciated by corporate sellers all over the world,” said Dr. Dirk Markus, Founding Partner of AURELIUS.

“With an excellent and highly motivated management in place and the operational and capital backing of AURELIUS we have the perfect team to drive the transition towards hard rock markets and unlock the potential of the business on a global level,” said Florian Muth, Partner of AURELIUS.

AURELIUS was advised on the transaction by Deutsche Bank (M&A), Wood Mackenzie (CDD), PwC (Accounting), Baker McKenzie (Legal), Howden (Insurance) and KPMG (Tax).

A telephone conference with the AURELIUS Management Team will be held at 2pm on Monday, December 13, 2021 in English for interested investors and journalists. Please send an email to investor@aureliusinvest.de to register.