German sanitary fittings maker Grohe AG receives several bids: report

German exclusive sanitary fittings maker Grohe AG, which has been put on the block by its private equity owners, has attracted several bids, Reuters yesterday reported, citing  people familiar with the process.

Grohe's owners, TPG Capital and the private equity arm of Credit Suisse, are running a dual track process of either selling the company or a stock market listing.

The potential sale could value Grohe, Europe's biggest sanitary fittings maker, at up to €4 billion ($5 billion), the report said.

Grohe's Swiss rival Geberit AG and Thailand's Siam Cement Group (SCG) are in the race to buy the Dusseldorf-based company, while US-based Fortune Brands, which had shown interest in Grohe in the past, appears to be disinterested, the report added.

But the Bangkok Post today reported that SCG has decided not to bid for Grohe AG and instead focus on the Asean region, where it has a strong foothold.

Founded by Friedrich Grohe in 1936, Grohe is the world's leading provider of sanitary fittings with production plants in six locations including three in Germany, and one each in Portugal, Thailand and Canada.

Grohe says its products are sold in 130 countries and has a global market share of around eight per cent.

Grohe had in 2011 acquired a 72-per cent stake in leading Chinese sanitary fittings producer Joyou

Grohe, which generates 85 per cent of its annual sales outside of Germany, posted sales of €1.4 billion and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of €273 million.