Electrolux to buy Egypt’s Olympic Group for $410 million

Electrolux, the world's second largest household appliance manufacturer, yesterday said that it will acquire a controlling stake in Egypt's Olympic Group Financial Investments, one of the largest manufacturers of household appliances in the Middle East and North Africa, in a transaction valued at $410 million.

Stockholm-based Electrolux will buy a 52-per cent controlling stake in Egyptian wash-machine manufacturer Olympic from private equity firm Paradise Capital for 40.60 Egyptian pounds ($6.82) per share and launch a mandatory tender offer for the remaining shares on completion of the deal at the same price.

Upon completion of the mandatory tender offer, Electrolux has agreed to sell Olympic Group's ownership in its two associated Egyptian Stock Exchange listed companies Namaa and B-Tech to Paradise Capital.

Based on the whole deal, the total equity value of Olympic Group's operations excluding Namaa and B-Tech will be approximately 2 billion Egyptian pounds ($410 million) including net debt of  740 million Egyptian pounds ($121 million).

Electrolux will pay a yearly management fee of 2.5 per cent of Olympic's sales to Paradise over the course of a seven-year deal.

Electrolux had agreed in October to buy a controlling stake in Olympic Group but suspended the acquisition in early February due to the anti-government demonstrations in Egypt, which culminated in the exit of its President Hosni Mubarak in end March.