As of Monday (3 October), the fibre-based products manufacturer is now operating under the business name of Ahlstrom. The divested Decor business is continuing as an independent company under the Munksjö name.
In the ownership reorganisation, the Decor business has been divested from Ahlstrom-Munksjö Holding to a newly formed Swedish company named Munksjö.
The new Munksjö is owned by Ahlstrom-Munksjö Holding with an approximate 25% share, Ahlstrom Capital Group with a share of approximately 60%, and Nidoco with a share of approximately 15%. The latter pair are both investment companies and affiliates of the current minority owners of Ahlstrom-Munksjö Holding.
The reorganisation of the ownership of the Decor business will generate cash in excess of €200m (£176m), supporting the group’s liquidity and strategy execution. The transaction will only have a limited impact on net indebtedness to adjusted EBITDA ratio.
In a statement, Ahlstrom said: “As separate companies, the increased management and board focus will support the separate companies Ahlstrom and Munksjö in achieving further sustainable growth and profitability through a more focused and ambitious agenda on a global basis.
“Both companies offer distinctive characteristics that are expected to attract investors, provide access to new capital and drive increased value.”
Ahlstrom-Munksjö has actively developed its Decor business over the years, by establishing a strong growth platform in South America through the acquisition of Caieiras’ specialty paper mill in Brazil, and more recently by entering the fast growing decor paper market in China through the acquisition of decor paper manufacturer Minglian New Materials Technology in Xingtai, Hebei Province.
“As a standalone company the Decor business will accelerate its growth, strengthen its competitiveness and global leadership in innovation,” Ahlstrom stated.
“The Decor business has operated under the Munksjö brand for more than 25 years, and although lately under the Ahlstrom-Munksjö brand, the business is most commonly known as simply ‘Munksjö’, a brand recognised for outstanding quality and service across the decor industry.”
The company’s Decor papers are primarily used as the decorative surface material in laminated wood-panel based furniture, flooring, and other interior and exterior building material applications.
The production takes place at six plants: Unterkochen and Dettingen in Germany, Tolosa in Spain, and Arches in France, as well as Caieiras in Brazil and Xingtai in China.
Annual net sales for the Decor business, whose sites employ 1,200 people combined, are around €500m and its production capacity is around 250,000 tonnes.
Net sales for Ahlstrom-Munksjö in 2021 were €3.1bn.
