Warburg Pincus plans to sell Safetykleen Europe for around £640 mn

US private equity firm Warburg Pincus is planning to sell Safetykleen Europe for around £640 million ($792 million), including debt, Reuters yesterday reported, citing four sources with knowledge of the matter.

Warburg Pincus, which has hired Goldman Sachs to conduct the sale, had acquired Safetykleen Europe in 2008 for £565 million ($695.57 million), and the sale was likely to attract bids from Europe, the US and China the report said.

Warburg had invested in Safetykleen Europe from a dollar fund and the value of the pound was a concern following Britain's vote to leave the European Union, which is potentially the reason for the PE firm in disposing off Safetykleen, the report added.

Brentford, UK-based Safetykleen is Europe's largest service provider for parts washers, servicing both the automotive and industrial sectors.

The company's machines clean the oil and grease off metal parts and are used in a wide range of automotive, industrial and logistics operations where there is an ongoing repair or maintenance requirement.

Safetykleen operates through a network of 69 branches and 19 satellite locations in 17 countries, including Turkey, as well as in Brazil and China.

It services approximately 105,000 machines for over 100,000 customers and performs more than 850,000 services each year.