German transformer maker approaches potential buyers in Asia

2016-6-14

Germany, Frankfurt: Buyout group BC Partners is approaching potential buyers for its German power transformer maker SGB-SMIT, four years after a sale to China's State Grid was halted by political intervention, according to three sources familiar with the matter, reports Yahoo Finance.

Information packages have been sent out to prospective buyers mainly in Asia, the sources said, but a formal auction, which may not be concluded until 2017, has not been launched yet.

Back in 2012, China's State Grid was in exclusive talks to buy SGB, but it failed to receive political support for a deal as China's National Development and Reform Commission had considered the sector to be suffering from overcapacity.

SGB Starkstrom was originally part of Germany's second-biggest utility, RWE. It was sold to private equity group HCP Capital Group in 2004 and then to BC Partners in 2008.

Source: Yahoo Finance